Undeniably Dead
by ActAppalled
Summary: Sookie is torn between two men, and at the same time must help Louisiana once again by being Sophie-Anne's aid in the battle between Louisana and New York. Rated M for sexual content and violence. Taken place before the last two books. Sookie's POV.
1. 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Sookie Stackhouse's character, or the remainder of the characters listed on this website. I have merely created the plot.

**Author's Note:** Ever since I first read _Dead until Dark_, I've been so in love with this series. It's far better than Twilight (no offence Twilight fans) because it is matured, sexy and thrilling. Although True Blood is hands down one of my favourite shows, the books will always remain better. This is my first Southern Vampire Mysteries story, so I'm excited to be writing one finally. Review and give me your opinion. Also, I'm re-reading the series and didn't have much money to get _From Dead to Worse_ and _Dead and Gone_, so these stories are based on what I've read so far.

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Chapter One

Normally when the weather here in Bon Temps is excruciatingly hot and muggy, I would be in a miserable mood and even refuse to come in to work on some occasions. Tonight was different for multiple reasons. Even Andy Bellefleur's drunken antics and criticizing couldn't spoil my mood, or Arlene's consisting glares towards my direction; despite the fact that I have been dating-vampires-free for a while now. I was completely content with my boyfriend, Quinn. The weretiger.

Quinn's well-known in the supernatural world, which I suppose would still be my world since I have been so caught up in it ever since Bill, my ex – who is a vampire, walked into my life. He's a weretiger, which means that he can transform into this 7-foot long beautiful orange tiger at the full moon. I feel like I'm his arm candy some times whenever we go out, but I love the attention we get and the way he treats me. He's a beautiful, kind man.

Again, always been sidetracked by my beautiful, animal boyfriend – and I mean that in the sense that not only is he a tiger physically, but amazing in bed as well. I could feel the eyes of a few patrons staring at me curiously as I stood there in my daydream, smiling to my own thoughts. They wouldn't expect any less of me, though, being a telepath and all. I'm still just crazy Sookie to everyone in the small little town, perhaps with the exception of the few loved ones I have. My grandmother was brutally murdered about a year and a half ago, and my parents died in a flash flood when I was seven. Jason, my older brother, doesn't live in Bon Temps anymore, however. Ever since he was bitten by a werepanther five months ago, he married to his charming girlfriend, and I say charming sarcastically, Crystal. They lived in Hotshot for a while, a small and strange community consisting of only werepanthers… disturbingly close werepanthers. That is, until Crystal decided to have an affair from someone else in Bon Temps. Jason was smart enough to back away from that afterwards.

Again, sidetracked. What I was trying to say before my own freaky mind went into its own world was that tonight was a completely different night. Tonight, I was going to a party. My first human party since high school. My close friend, Tara Thornton, was hosting a little party for no special reason beside the fact she was in desperate need to blow off some steam from work. I happily agreed to go, and even Quinn was invited. I was look especially cheerful that night at Merlotte's, the bar I work at, while I anticipated my shift to be over.

"Sookie, could we have a few more rounds of Bud over here?" Hoyt Fortenberry called from the back. My brother Jason, his date for the night, a twenty-two year old named Lesa Dennis, and Andy Bellefleur were crammed into the far booth, four empty mugs of beer around them.

"You sure can, Hoyt," I said cheerfully, rushing over to pick up the mugs and place them on my tray.

"Lookin' good, sis," Jason said honestly, smiling up at me. Jason was a handsome man, and probably the final good looking bachelor in Bon Temps to be hitched. We both had blonde hair, though mine was fairer than his, and blue eyes. He was well built from working on the road crew.

"You too, Jason. And you too, Lesa," I added, smiling at her. Lesa was small, about five foot two, with sandy blonde hair that was so shiny it looked like a wig that fell to her shoulders. She had cute freckles scattered over her nose and big doe-like grey eyes. She was wearing a simple white T-shirt and jeans, and looked extremely uncomfortable.

"Thanks," she mumbled, crossing her arms and furrowing her brow. I let my mind wander in to hers for just a brief moment, and discovered something interesting; Lesa was a Were, as well. I wasn't sure what type of Were she was though. Were's minds are always tangles of red and snarling images, but I caught the brief feeling of drowsiness and wanting to go home. I sympathized for Lesa, since I knew the feeling of just wanting to go home.

"Maybe this should be your last round tonight," I said as I turned to walk away with the empty glasses, catching Lesa's thankful gaze. I nodded, smiled, and walked back to the bar to fill their glasses.

"Going to Tara's party tonight, cher?" Sam Merlotte, my boss, asked. Sam was a shapeshifter, which are slightly different from Weres in the sense that they can change into any creature while Weres are limited to one specific animal. Some shapeshifters however, I learned, tend to prefer one specific animal. In Sam's case, he was the beautiful collie that I had decided to name Dean.

"Of course I am. Haven't you noticed me staring at the clock since I walked into work today?" I said with a smile, proceeding to pour beer into one of the mugs.

Sam grinned as he continued to wipe down the bar absentmindedly, a habit he picked up. "I suppose Quinn's coming as well," he said.

"Yup." I smiled even bigger as I set down one mug and got out another. "Are you taking any one?"

"Nah, just myself." Sam and I had always had chemistry, but nothing had progressed further from a kiss or two. I didn't think I would be able to date Sam, though. I had too much going on in my life.

"Well, I'll see you there then!" I cheerfully walked off with the fresh beers towards Hoyt and my brother when I caught a gleam off someone's head coming into the bar. My smile broadened so much I thought my face would break.

Hurriedly, I deposited the drinks to the table and turned at a full run to meet Quinn in the doorway. His strong, muscular arms captured me perfectly and swung me around, and his lips met mine at just the right moment as he set me back on my feet, his hands capturing my face.

"Hey, babe," he said after the kiss, smiling with his bright white teeth. He was tall, about six feet, with a gleaming bald head and pansy-coloured purple eyes. He looked absolutely delicious tonight in a bronze silk shirt with very dim grey jeans and casual black sneakers.

"Hey yourself," I said brightly. I glanced back at Sam hopefully, considering the only table left had been Hoyt, Jason, Lesa and Andy, and I was off in five minutes. He nodded once at Quinn, looked at my face, and waved a hand telling me to go.

"Thank you!" I squealed like a teenage girl. I left Quinn to go to Sam's office to collect my purse from the drawer, walking back out to the bar.

"I'm parked around back; do you want to follow me back home so I can change?" I asked Quinn as I untied my apron and hung it on a hook by Sam's office. Showing up at Tara's party dressed in the black shorts, white scoop neck T-shirt and Nike's would feel like work all over again.

"Sure, if I can help you change," he said huskily, grinning down at me.

I shivered and smiled. "We'll see about that." I tiptoed up to kiss his lips once before walking out the back door towards my car. Once inside the car, I buckled up and did a quick glance in my rear view mirror, gasping as I saw a pale face staring back at me from the back seat.

"Going somewhere?" Eric Northman asked, smiling. Eric was a vampire, and owner of the vampire bar out in Shreveport called Fangtasia. He also sheriff of Area Five in Louisiana, a detail I won't get into. His blonde hair, being the exact same shade of blonde as mine, was framing his face in delicate waves, something I had never seen before.

"Yes, actually, to Tara's party," I said, glaring at him for frightening the living day lights out of me. Not that he had any living day lights to worry about.

"Oh, well am I allowed to assist you there?" Eric asked, a smile never leaving his lips.

"Quinn is taking me."

Eric's brow furrowed and his fangs ran out just a little. "The tiger."

"Yes, the tiger. And my boyfriend."

"I believe it would be in your best interest if you allowed me to take you instead."

I snorted. "Eric, you can come along, but Quinn is the one bringing me."

Eric fled from the backseat to the passenger seat in two seconds, his face so close to mine I could see ever pore on his skin. "If only I was in place of that tiger," he growled, his tongue running over his fangs. "Tell me Sookie." His voice lowered to a husky growl and his face came ever closer to mine. "Was I still the best sex you ever had?"

"Now you stop talking like that, you hear me!" I snapped, trying my best to sound angry no matter how much I wanted to jump Eric right there. Eric and I had had a wild fling months back when a witch had cursed him and forced him to lose his memory, and I would never admit that he was still the best I ever had. Quinn was wonderful in bed, but Eric would always be better.

"I think you enjoy it, Sookie," Eric breathed, his cool breath causing me to shiver horribly. His hand shot down between us, and I gasped at where it went. "I think you adore it, actually," he said as his fingers moved a familiar rhythm against me.

I clutched his wrist, half attempting to make him stop and half attempting to push him against me harder. Quinn and I had not had sex in a long time, considering he had a two week long trip to New York City to perform a vampire wedding with Extremely (E)legant Events, and the sexual frustration had been building up. It was coming out in a horrible way right now.

"Eric, is it possible to rescind my invitation when we're in a car?" I breathed, gasping as his fingers never stopped.

"No," he growled as his head dropped to kiss me hungrily on the lips. Unfortunately, my arms wound around his neck and my hips moved into his hand greedily while our lips mashed together. My hands gripped the back of his hair and my breath came out unsteadily as I arched my back against the car seat. It was when I felt one of his hands unbuckling his belt that I regained my sense and pulled away.

"That's enough," I said, crossing my legs so his hand moved back. Eric's fangs were fully extended now and he appeared to almost be out of breath as his eyes scolded down at me.

"One day, Sookie, it will happen. I know how you're feeling, and I know you are very particularly horny," he said hungrily.

"Eric, leave. Quinn is right around the bar and it was wrong of me, let alone you, to do that." I opened my door and with all my might, raised my knees to shove Eric out of the car with my legs. He stumbled a bit and climbed out upright on the cement.

"I'll see you at the party," I mumbled, closing the door and turning the ignition as I pushed the small car towards the exit of Merlotte's and ensuring Quinn was following me, glancing in the rear view mirror to see Eric had vanished from where I left him.

As I drove up the road to my grandmother's house, which I had rightfully claimed as my own, a million feelings rushed through me at once. I knew I had very strong feelings for Eric, sexual emotions aside, but I also knew that I had a whole other set of strong feelings building for Quinn. Eric was very strong, stronger than Quinn, and had protected me many more times than Quinn had. Eric was also about eleven hundred years old, which was something to consider I guess. Quinn left very often for weeks at a time for work, and Eric was relatively local. There would always be something that stopped me from going further with Eric; he was undead, Quinn was a breathing, heart-beating, blood-pumping human.

I gripped the steering wheel tightly and clenched my teeth. I promised myself I was going to have a good time at Tara's party tonight, all feelings for both men aside. I would spend time with Tara and other local friends of ours, and drink, because I wasn't much of a drinker. Maybe even get a room with Quinn – yes, Quinn – and make sure Eric knew it.

What was wrong with me? I shook my head and cleared my mind, sighing deeply as I pulled until the little road that led to my house. I made a promise to myself right then and there that by the end of the month I would know who I would want to be with; Eric the powerful vampire, or Quinn the handsome weretiger.

Once I parked my car and climbed out, locking it behind me, I stood waiting on the porch for Quinn to get out of his truck. He had followed me from the bar, and the truck shone in the moonlight as he pulled in to park beside my car. He climbed out of the cab, shut the door, and beamed as he walked up to follow me.

"What are you wearing tonight?" he asked, sliding his arms around me.

I smiled and turned to unlock the door, pushing it open to lead into the foyer. "You wait down here, I'll be a few minutes," I said, kissing him once again and retreating upstairs to my room.

I opened the closet in my room and scanned my clothes, wondering what would be ideal for a house party. Considering the last one I had been to took place almost ten years ago, I had no idea. Jeans were too casual, and I wanted to make sure I wasn't completely out of place when I got there. I sighed and rubbed my temples, reaching behind to pull my hair out of its ponytail, letting it fall over my shoulders and chest in loose waves. I opted for black leggings, the newest addition to my closet from Amelia Broadway – the roommate I had for a while who had visited from New Orleans after needing a place to stay after Katrina – as a shopping gift, and a partially see-through beige and purple bohemian top that flowed and was very comfortable. The leggings stopped halfway down my calf, and I paired the outfit with black flats. Overall, a comfortable outfit.

I retreated to the bathroom to check my reflection. I touched up my mascara and lipstick, and ran a comb through my hair until it fell in silky tousles down my chest. The shirt was see-through enough to see the lacy purple bra I was wearing, but not see-through enough to make it extremely noticeable. I smiled at my reflection, popped in some pearl studs, and went downstairs to meet my date.

Quinn's reaction was wonderful; he told me to pause on the top of the stairs, spin, and then smiled broadly. "You look beautiful, babe," he said, taking my hand as I came down.

"So do you," I said, wrapping my arms around his neck to kiss him on the lips. Our mouths fit perfectly together, and I got so caught up in the moment that I forgot all about Eric and the incident that happened in the car only fifteen minutes ago.

"Ready?" he asked, leading me to the front door.

"Yes," I said, smiling and locking the door behind me.


	2. 2

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Sookie Stackhouse's character, or the remainder of the characters listed on this website. I have merely created the plot.

**Author's Note:** I was swarmed with emails telling me how many people have added me to alerts, or to their favourite story/author list, and reviews. Thank you so much. I'm glad that I am not disappointing anyone so far. More reviews please, and enjoy the next chapter!

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Chapter Two

"Is he going to be there?"

"He who?"

"You know who. The vampire."

"Which vampire?"

Quinn gripped the steering wheel with both hands a little tighter as he drove down the road that my driveway slid on to. "Babe, you know damn well which vampire. The blonde one, the one that's had your blood; the sheriff."

I crossed my ankles in my seat and stared down into my lap, suddenly feeling ashamed all over again. Quinn had never been fond of Eric, since he was well aware of our history and the faint chemistry we still possessed for each other. Quinn had also been the witness of a very intimate moment Eric and I had shared in a corridor when we stayed at the Pyramid of Gizeh, a vampire hotel, in Rhodes three weeks previous. I don't blame him for having negative vibes about the eleven hundred year old Viking.

"I don't know," I said. That much was the truth. "I really haven't spoken to him much lately." Maybe a little lie.

Quinn's hands relaxed and he reached up to readjust the rear view mirror. "Forget it. Let's just have a good time tonight, babe. I don't need any more stress on my shoulders," he said.

_O-kay_. I glanced at him sideways with a crease in my brow. Not that Quinn was one to open up to me completely, it would be nice if he could at least feel the need to confront me and talk to me about any problems he may be having at work or with his family. I had always been one to listen, aside from using my mind, to how others were feeling.

For just a moment, I looked outside the window and attempted to see past the thick red snarls that Quinn's mind held. More than ever, those red snarls were tangled and the faint sound of a tiger's growl caused me to rear out of his head and back into present time. Definitely not trying_ that_ again.

Once I told Quinn where to turn for Tara's house, I felt a moment of reminiscing about the past. Tara Thornton and I had been friends in high school, and I had fully remembered coming to this very house for sleepovers multiple times. Although Tara's parents had always been abusive, we had managed to stay locked up in her room for most of the sleepover and by the time morning came, her mom would be passed out on the couch with a bottle of whisky in her hand. Luckily, Tara's mother had fled years ago with a man whom would remain nameless to Tara, and therefore Tara was left with the family home.

Quinn parked the truck and came around as I opened the door of the cab to help me out. He gripped my hips, spun me and set me down, grinning sheepishly at his own mannerism. I smiled back and turned to Tara's home. It was a medium-sized bungalow that hung out in a forest close by to Tara Togs, the clothing store she owned. The exterior was painted white with pale yellow shutters, doors, and the porch was painted pale yellow as well. A few people who I didn't recognize under the poor lighting were talking and swaying a bit to the loud music that came from the inside of the house, hovering around a bucket of ice and beers. There were already about fifteen other cars parked around the clearing, including Jason's black pick-up with pink and aqua swirls.

"This looks fun," I said somewhat cheerfully, disappointed in the fact that so far I could not recognize a single vehicle except for my brother's.

Quinn took my hand and squeezed it, comforting me only a little bit as we walked up to the open front door, where light poured out onto the porch. Once inside, I was immediately knocked back by marijuana smoke, loud music, and clangs of noise. I squinted in pain as the smoke burned my eyes slightly, glancing around the foyer and the people were moving away to the music.

Jason waved from the living room, where Lesa was seen laying on the couch legs spread and shirt shoved up under her breasts. An unknown boy about Jason's age was kneeling in front of her, obviously drunk and licking body shots off her. Lesa was hooting with laughter, so obviously she had gotten over her glum of not wanting to be out anymore.

I turned my attention away from the disgusting scene and glanced up at Quinn, who was looking around the house questionably. I pulled him by the hand into the kitchen to the left, shoving our way through the party goers until I found Tara.

Tara was a pretty girl with olive skin and dark hair, but was dressed so scandalously that I thought she looked rather sleazy personally. She wore stretchy purple leggings with sheen to them and an aqua blue strip of fabric that barely covered her breasts. Her heels were about three inches tall, and she was balancing two beer bottles in her hands, grinding up against JB du Rone.

"Sookie!" Tara moved away from JB, who looked displeased that she had moved away but happy to see me. Tara swung her arms around my neck and hugged me tightly. "I'm so happy you and Quinn could make it," she said, beaming up at Quinn and then me.

"Good party, Tara," I said, frowning mentally as I saw JB take a long toke of a joint. "I didn't know you, uh, smoked."

"Oh, well, not on a daily basis but I have some at least once every two months. It's not all bad," she said, beaming as she took a long drink from a beer.

"Tara," Quinn's booming voice was clearly heard over the loud music. "Where can I get some refreshments for Sookie and me?" he asked.

"Oh, the bar's right behind you," she said. Quinn and I turned to see the dining room table was covered with a punch bowl, vodka bottles, a bin of ice and beer, cranberry juice, the red plastic party cups, rum, whisky, and a variety of other alcohol bottles I was already used to at work. The counter tops were lined with snacks, including pretzels, chips, vegetables, a few boxes of pizza, dips, cupcakes and brownies. I reminded myself to stay away from the brownies, however.

"What would you like, babe?" Quinn asked, moving his way towards the bar. I wasn't much of a drinker, having seen the effects alcohol had on people on a daily basis, but I opted for a cranberry juice with vodka. Quinn took a Heineken out of the bin for himself.

"So far so good," I murmured, unsure of whether or not Quinn heard me until he took my hand again and squeezed it.

After a few minutes of awkwardly standing there with Quinn, sipping our drinks, I decided to get out of this glum of not knowing many people there and the marijuana. I placed my drink on the counter and took Quinn's to do the same, grabbed his hand and let my body let loose with the music. Quinn was an excellent dancer and found a way to put his hands on my hips and move me back against him in a way that could only be implied as sexual.

I knew there was a ton of sexual tension between us, hell, two weeks of not seeing each other and being too tired to do anything about it really got to us after a while. I wrapped my arms around his neck and slithered back against his body as his fingers ran down my arms. I could only pray that Jason couldn't see me right now – how weird would that be?

"Babe," Quinn said, and before I could answer I felt something push against my lower back. I glanced back at him with a grin and he tilted my head to the side to run his teeth along the sensitive part of my neck. I gasped, and suddenly had a mental flashback of Eric doing the exact same thing to me when he his memory had been swiped.

As I opened my eyes, I could see a heart-wrenchingly familiar pair walking into the house hand in hand. Bill Compton, more importantly known as my ex, and his girlfriend of a few months, Selah Pumphrey. Selah was a real estate saleswoman who was at least ten pounds lighter than me, with amazing make-up and pristine hair. I loathed her. Tonight she was wearing a skin-hugging green dress that left little to the imagination and three-inch high fuck me heels, while Bill was wearing a navy shirt and light jeans with brown loafers.

As soon as Bill noticed me through the crowd – Selah was too busy watching the scene with Lesa in the living room – his fangs ran out and he stared me down. I swallowed hard and turned to face Quinn.

"Bill's here," I muttered into his shirt.

Quinn looked up and nodded at Bill, suddenly grasping my waist and lifting me up to move us away from eyes view.

"Better, babe?" he asked, circling his arms around me. I ran my fingers up the muscles showing in those arms, the warmth of him pressing against me.

"Much," I said and grasped the front of his shirt to pull him down to kiss me. Our lips pressed hungrily into one another's, and soon Quinn was walking me backwards into the room next to the kitchen, which happened to be the back entrance and non-occupied. His hands found their way to my breasts and rubbed at them slowly but firmly, causing me to gasp a little and begin to unbutton his shirt. I completely forgot where we were for a second, because if I hadn't of opened my eyes for a split second and seen Eric over Quinn's shoulder grinning at me with his fangs out, I would've continued. I gasped in shock.

"Babe, is everything alright?" Quinn asked, moving his hands back and looking down at me.

I glanced over Quinn's shoulder quickly to see Eric was no longer there, and nodded. "I just don't think now's the right time," I said, and that was true. Now was definitely not a good time.

Quinn agreed and buttoned his shirt back up as we walked back out into the kitchen. I got myself a new drink; after having watched Dateline about the date rape drugs, I knew better. This time I made myself a mixture of Sprite, vodka and pineapple juice. It was extremely tasty. I drank six more that night.

By the time I was officially drunk, I had not only grinded up with Quinn, but Tara as well. Every male in that room of the house hooted as we slithered up against one another, lost in the intoxication of the liquor.

I stopped dancing to swing my arms around JB and hug him. "Y'know, JB," I said, completely wasted out of my mind. "Y'all should get married, you and Tara there. You'd be the most beautiful couple, and I mean that."

JB was only tipsy, and laughed hysterically at the thought. "Well hell, Sookie, Tara's a great girl and all but I gotta know a lady much better than that to marry her, no matter how long I've known Tara," he said.

I shrugged and spun away from JB, pausing to look around for Quinn. He was on his fifth beer and talking away to the guy I had witnessed licking Lesa's stomach hours ago. Shrugging, I shimmied my way through the crowd and spun in circles until I bumped into someone. Turning around with a bright apologetic smile on my face, I realised I had bumped into Selah and Bill.

"Oops! My bad, you two, my bad," I giggled, swaying on my feet cheerfully. My mind was fuzzy from the alcohol and I barely remembered how the hell I had gotten here in the first place. Being drunk also left my guard down to my mind, and I clearly heard the thoughts of those around me, including the sober Selah.

_Piece of white trash, Bill can do so much better than that and he has. Lucky of him to get away from that drunken waitress before he ended up like her, depressed and wasting away his life with alcohol. Of course, he couldn't drink anyway, but I know white trash when I see it…_

The next three minutes happened in a blur. As I stood there dumbfounded from Selah's thoughts, I glanced up at Bill and then, with as much strength as I could mingle, pulled back my arm and socked the stuck-up Selah Pumphrey right in the face.

"Sookie!" Bill's fangs extended angrily as he leapt out immediately after I punched her. Selah's nose began bleeding immensely and I stood there shocked with myself as tears erupted from her eyes. I noticed Quinn had glanced up at the mention of my name, and his eyes grew wide as he took in the scene before he excused himself from the guy to move over to us.

The party goers had froze at the scene as I stood there with bloody knuckles. She deserved it though for the things she said, well thought; but I was still so unbelievably stunned that I had just done that. Jason caught my gaze across the room and he stuck two thumbs up in the air along with Hoyt.

"You fucking bitch!" Selah screamed, her hands cupping the blood that oozed out of her nose.

Once again, I surprised myself. "Don't you ever fucking call me white trash again," I said, turning my back and storming up the stairs. That is, until Selah grabbed my ankle and pulled me down, causing my chin to smack off the carpeted stairway. She was pulling me back to fight.

_Well hell_, I thought. I was up for a fight. Immediately, I dove on top of Selah, knocking her to the floor and we began to roll around in a mass of girl-on-girl. I'm sure every guy witnessing was in heaving. As I grabbed a handful of Selah's hair and she dragged her nails down my arm painfully, Bill grabbed onto Selah's shoulders and Quinn grabbed onto mine, pulling us off each other. Both Selah and I were bleeding, though she was more than I was; her nose, mouth, and the minor cuts I gave her were oozing, and our breaths were ragged from the fight.

"That's enough, both of you," Bill said angrily, staring down at me with cold eyes. I saw Eric behind Bill's shoulder and felt Quinn's fingers tighten on my shoulders as he noticed him too. Eric was laughing. Hysterically.

"Sookie, let's get you cleaned up," Tara said as she grabbed my hand. "Bill and Selah, I think it'd be in best interest if you left now."

Bill guided Selah out the front door without looking my way once more as Tara dragged me up the stairs, and the party continued on downstairs as if nothing had happened. Tara, who was probably drunker that I was, still had had the common sense to get me cleaned up and knock some sense into me.

"What were you thinking? What did she even say to you?" Tara said as she sat me on the edge of the bathtub and dampened a towel. I glanced at the mirror and saw I wasn't too bad. I had some bruises forming on my breasts already, and the only damage that was severely done were the four inch long nail cuts left in my right arm. Tara dabbed at those cuts as she waited for my answer.

"She didn't say anything," I said humbly. "It was the things she was thinking of me."

Tara frowned and squeezed the towel until all the pink water was out of it before rinsing it and dabbing again. "Don't worry, that Selah is a bitch anyway. Someone had to pull the stick out of her ass already," she said.

I shrugged and stared down at my feet, partially ashamed of myself. After a moment, there was a knock at the bathroom door. Eric opened it half way.

"Can I come in?" he asked Tara, although his invitation was not needed; he was just being polite. Tara glanced at me, and I nodded.

"What a fight down there," he said grinning, his hands in his pockets. I thought it was such a humanly gesture that I smiled. "There is nothing better than a drunken girl-on-girl fight to set the mood at a party."

"If you don't mind, I'm pretty cut up here," I said, frowning up at Eric. He glanced at my arm and frowned as well.

"Would you like me to dispose of Selah Pumphrey?"

"No!" I thought for a second, giggled then shook my head. "No, that wouldn't be the right way to handle it. I'm fine, really. Tara's helping me out."

Tara smiled as she found some long bandages under the cupboard. She placed some gauze on the wound and wrapped the bandages around them, applying pressure and fastening it until it was securely in place. "All better," she said, standing up.

"The tiger is waiting for you downstairs," Eric said, running a hand through his smooth blonde hair. I took a second to admire his outfit; tight, tight black jeans, black sandals and a fairly tight white T-shirt with a grey vest.

"Okay." I stood up and went to the bathroom door, looking up at Eric as he stood in front of it. He looked down at me, searching my eyes with a crease forming between his eyes before reaching behind him, grasping the door knob and opening the door for Tara and me to pass through. He followed after us as we slid downstairs.

Quinn was standing with his arms crossed, shaking his head. "Babe, you are nuts," he said, taking my hand and moving my light sleeve up to check the bandages.

"I'm fine." I smiled and suddenly felt almost human again as a yawn escaped my lips. "No offence Tara, but I've had enough excitement for the night."

"I'd ask you guys to crash upstairs, but someone's already occupied both bedrooms," she said with a frown.

"We could sleep in the bed of my truck, babe," Quinn said with a smile.

"I'll get you some blankets," Tara said before I could answer, retreating upstairs again.

Quinn and I left Eric inside the house as we walked outside. Quinn got in the truck to park it around the side of the house for more privacy as I waited for Tara, who came out with two sweatshirts, both men's, four pillows and a bundle of thick blankets in her arms.

"The party's almost over anyway, so just relax and hopefully get some sleep," Tara said, hugging me once more before she went back in to join the partiers.

I walked around to the side of the house where Quinn was setting up a tent-like canvas that went over the bed of the truck. It was amazing to see, and I smiled at the gesture as I slid off the leggings and shirt and into the sweatshirt and pyjama bottoms Tara had given me.

"Cute," he said with a grin, taking the other sweatshirt and sliding it on. I folded my clothes and set them inside the passenger seat as Quinn prepared somewhat of a bed for us in the tent. When I came around, he was lying on his back underneath a big fuzzy pink blanket. I giggled.

"Long night," I murmured, crawling in to lie beside him underneath the blankets. Quinn sat up to close the tent and laid back to wrap his arms around me, kissing my forehead.

"You said it, babe," he said, closing his eyes and falling into a fast sleep. It took me a little longer but eventually, I was dreaming of peaceful thoughts in the arms of a big, strong tiger in the cool night in Bon Temps.


	3. 3

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Sookie Stackhouse's character, or the remainder of the characters listed on this website. I have merely created the plot.

**Author's Note:** I had most of this done days ago, but couldn't get online to finish and update it. Enjoy and review!

* * *

Chapter Three

When my eyes fluttered open the next morning, I saw the dim sunlight creeping through a crack in the tent ensuring that it was in fact day time. I smiled as I felt Quinn's arms still around me, the soft rumble of his chest against my back and his warm breath tickling my ear. However, that satisfaction was quickly changed when a sudden pounding headache came followed by nausea.

I moaned and clenched my eyes shut in pain, grinding my teeth together slowly as the pain didn't pass. I didn't remember most of last night, except for the fact that I had fallen asleep in the bed of Quinn's truck since we were both too drunk to drive home. My arm had a pounding ache in it, and my knuckles were sore to bend.

I sat up and rubbed my arm, feeling the bandage through the sweatshirt. Curious, I rolled the sleeve up and looked at it, frowning as I concentrated on last night's events. I really couldn't remember a single thing that had happened. Normally, I have a very good memory; then again, normally I am not drunk off my ass either.

I felt Quinn shift beside me and when I glanced down to look at him, his deep purple eyes were staring back up at me. "Morning, babe," he murmured dreamily, smiling and then wincing. I could tell Quinn wasn't the only one experiencing a hangover at the moment.

"How much did I drink last night?" I asked, rolling the sleeve back down and tossing the blankets off my side of the truck bed.

Quinn sat up, and I saw that at some point during the night he had removed the sweatshirt Tara had given him, leaving his smooth chest bare. I admired it for a moment, smiling, before I realized he had been talking to me.

"Sorry?"

"I said you drank quite a lot." He hesitated. "You don't remember anything from last night?" he asked.

I shook my head and crawled over to unzip the tent, squinting as a burst of sunlight met my eyes. I came face-to-face with the side of Tara's house. Awkwardly, I managed to climb out of the bed and land on my bare feet on the stones, which hurt quite a lot. I tiptoed around the front of the truck and opened the door, pulling on the flats I had worn here. It felt good to be wearing comfortable clothes and shoes; I had never been the type to wear ridiculous outfits unless completely necessary. It bothered me that I had no recollection of what happened last night, and the way Quinn had asked made me wonder if I had done something horribly wrong.

Quinn came around the driver's side to collect his own shoes and the shirt he had worn here as well. It was hot out, but the shirt I wore last night wasn't very appropriate to wear with the pyjama pants. I walked silently over to Tara's house, peering in the window and happy to see that everything had already been cleaned up and Tara and JB were drinking coffee and talking while about ten garbage bags surrounded them.

I tapped on the window. Tara turned, smiled, and waved me in. I made my way to the front door, Quinn right behind me, and opened it.

"Sleep well?" I asked, sitting down at the kitchen table.

"Yeah, although I woke up with a horrible hangover." Tara shook her head and nodded towards the pot of coffee. "You guys want some?"

Quinn and I nodded simultaneously and watched Tara as she poured two mugs of coffee for us. I grinned as she handed Quinn a Minnie Mouse mug, bright pink with little white flowers all over it. Quinn accepted it modestly, taking a sip and winking at me over the rim. I laughed.

After Quinn and I had helped cleaned up the final bits of last night, we got back into the truck and Quinn drove me home. Despite the fact that we had slept for eleven hours, I was so tired that I rested my head on the window the entire drive home. Quinn didn't say anything, and I took his silence to mean that he had too much of a headache to speak, or was as tired as I was.

When we pulled into my driveway, I climbed out on my own and gathered my clothes from last night. I couldn't wait to have a hot shower and get to work so that I could keep myself occupied. I made a mental note to myself to stop by the pharmacy to pick up some Tylenol before going to work.

"Babe, I'd come in and have a shower, but I have a wedding ceremony to set up in Shreveport today," he said, checking his watch. "And I have to be there in an hour."

"Okay." I was too tired to say much else, and turned away from the front door that I had been in the process of opening to give Quinn a goodbye kiss. He swung his arms around my waist, twirled me, and pressed his lips down against mine.

"The wedding's tomorrow. I should be able to come see you in two or three days." He placed one more kiss on my forehead and went over to his truck without another word. I waved at him as he drove away and then went inside the house finally.

After showering and putting on some clean clothes, I heated up leftover tuna casserole that Frannie – Quinn's sister – had made me as sort of a peace offering. It was really good, I found out, as I sat at the kitchen table and ate it while watching the news. I was peaceful just sitting in the kitchen by myself, not having to deal with vampires for a long time as far as I was concerned, and feeling human for once.

One hour before my shift started, I got dressed into my work clothes and decided to head out to the pharmacy to pick up the Tylenol. On the drive there, I kept glancing down at my bandaged arm, still unsure of how I had been injured in the first place. I knew I should check under the bandage to see if it had been anything serious, but I couldn't bring myself to do it for some reason.

As I pulled into the parking lot of the pharmacy and climbed out, I saw a recognizable car parked a few spaces down; Selah Pumphrey. I frowned and decided to ignore it as I walked into the pharmacy. Bad idea.

Selah was standing at the counter near the back, picking up a prescription. When she turned, I jumped. She had a black eye and a piece of metal over her nose, telling me someone had broken it. She was covered in a few bruises as well, and the right side of her upper lip was swollen. Still, she managed to look reasonable in a pressed navy pinstripe suit with a pink camisole underneath.

"Hi," I said, making my way over to the headache remedies aisle. Selah followed me, and I glanced over my shoulder questionably as she came up to me.

"What?"

"Aren't you going to apologize for this?" she asked.

I frowned. "Why would I?"

Selah placed her hands on her hips and glared at me. "_You_ did this to me, you know that?" she snapped. "Or were you too drunk to remember."

_Of course I was_, I thought. I think if I was sober I would clearly remember punching someone in the face with enough pressure to break their nose.

"I'm sorry, Selah. I don't remember, but I'm sure you didn't deserve what I did," I said. That was a complete lie. Selah Pumphrey absolutely hated me, and thought I was constantly attempting to steal Bill back from her. I could've laughed at how ludicrous that assumption was.

_Fucking white trash_, I heard Selah's mind say. I ignored her, since that was obviously the same reason I had gotten into the fight last night in the first place. I found some Tylenol as Selah made her way back to pick up her painkillers. I had spent most of my life controlling my facial expressions to the things I heard in someone's head, and I knew how to control myself when I wasn't completely filled with booze. I would continue to keep that image.

After paying for my Tylenol and taking two outside in the car with a bottle of water, I made my way over to work for my four to midnight shift. I was glad that Sam had put me on an eight hour shift every other day now, since I didn't really have any other plans otherwise and would need the money no matter what. I still had money left over from the bidding I did for Sophie-Anne, the Queen of Louisiana, three weeks ago. It was a whopping amount, but I had been contemplating getting some new furniture and even moving out of my grandmother's house for a place of my own. There were some beautiful houses closer to town, and at a reasonable price as well. I reminded myself not to talk to Selah about that. We were definitely no longer on speaking terms at all now.

I parked my car in the back parking lot near Sam's trailer and crawled out. It was much cooler by now, as it was the beginning of September, and I gave myself a pat on the back for remembering to throw a sweater in the back of the car. I crawled back in to grab it and then made my way to the employee entrance at the back.

As I was making a beeline for Sam's desk drawer, where everyone stashed their purses and personal items, I noticed that the new chef Sam had hired last week was in. Lance Brown was a citizen of Shreveport, but had failed to find work in the city and made his way over to Bon Temps, where Merlotte's just so happened to be in need of a new chef. Lance was about twenty-one, the youngster of the bar, and had mousy brown curly hair that surrounded his face in pretty ringlets. He had a small amount of stubble around his chin and the darkest brown eyes I'd ever seen. He was extremely tall, about six foot four, but extremely scrawny as well, which made him look like a stick He also had the prettiest eyelashes I'd ever seen, very dark and long.

"Hi Sookie," Lance said as I closed the door to Sam's office and made my way to the bar. He was wearing a deep green long sleeve T-shirt with the sleeves rolled up covered in a partially dirty apron, and beige khakis. He was shaking a basket of fries in the deep fryer as I tied on my own apron, black in colour that tied around my waist.

"Hi Lance, how are you?" I asked politely as I shoved a pad of paper and a pencil in the pockets.

"Not too bad." He grinned and I noticed he only had one dimple on his left cheek. Shucks, he was just getting cuter by the minute. He reminded me of a living breathing porcelain doll.

I waved at Sam, who was standing behind the bar pouring beers, and looked around for Holly, who I was replacing. Holly's spiky black hair stood out in the bar as I found her serving Andy and Portia Bellefleur. I zigzagged through the tables and tapped Holly on the shoulder to tell her I was here to replace her.

"Oh, well hey Sookie." She smiled at me politely. I didn't consider Holly and me to be close friends, but we were on perfectly fine speaking terms and got along just fine. Plus I had saved her son's life pretty much, leaving her in a tough scenario to hate me.

"Portia ordered an ice tea, and Andy ordered water," she whispered as she turned to go. I was shocked to hear that Andy, who was more of a beer drinker than a water drinker, had ordered such a normal beverage. But I quickly hid my surprise with a bright smile and spun on my heel to get their drinks.

When I was heading back with a platter of drinks in my hand, I saw Halleigh Robinson, Andy's wife-to-be, coming into the bar. She looked real innocent and cute in a yellow sweater and blue jeans, and smiled as she saw me coming.

"Halleigh, I was just taking these to Andy and Portia. Can I get you something to drink if you're joining them?" I asked politely.

"Oh thanks Sookie. I'll just have an ice tea," she said with a smile on her face. "I'm excited to be seeing you at the wedding next week, and I'm so glad you could do the bar with Sam."

"It was no big deal," I said with a smile as I turned to collect one more drink. Truth was, I was slightly upset that I had not been invited as an honest to God guest rather than the help. Then again, Halleigh and I weren't best friends and although we got along just fine, I don't think we'd be good enough friends to the point where she'd invite me as a guest.

Once I had another ice tea added to the tray, I made my way back to their table. I set the drink by each person, trying my best to not make eye contact with Andy. Andy Bellefleur and I had never gotten along, to the point where we pretty much hated one another. That was fine by me.

"What can I get you three?" I asked cheerfully.

"Cheeseburger for Andy and me," Portia said, her fingers tensing in a fist. I jotted the order down and turned to Halleigh.

"Oh, just a burger Lafayette for me please," she said, smiling at me. I smiled back and wrote down the order, which had been a creation of our previous cook, Lafayette. (Actually, it was just a burger dumped in the "special sauce", which was mayonnaise, ketchup, relish and a bit of beer.)

As I was walking away, I did a bad thing and let my shield down to look into Portia's mind to discover why she was so tense. I almost caught myself gasping out loud; luckily I had practice keeping my face straight for so long.

Portia had missed her period, two weeks ago. She was terrified to tell Andy because he might call off the entire wedding. Andy had never been good with children, his mother had told her. Portia was hoping she could get an abortion by next week.

I spun around to snap at Portia that she would not do such a thing, but I stopped myself in time and turned away embarrassed. It was my fault for going into someone's mind when I shouldn't have. I zipped my mouth for the rest of the evening.

After being on my feet for seven hours, I desperately asked Sam if I could take a break since my feet were killing me. The bar was packed with people by this time, including Tara Thornton and JB du Rone – or perhaps her name was Tara du Rone now – and Selah Pumphrey, to my disgust. Sam reluctantly agreed, and I rushed to Sam's office with a bottle of water. I almost decided to just sit in Sam's chair for my break, but that wouldn't polite. Instead, I grabbed my cell phone from my purse and my sweater, and headed outside to sit on the rear of my car.

Once I hopped on, I opened the bottle and took an enormous chug of cold water. It felt amazingly refreshing. I sighed and leaned back against the window, flipping open my phone to find I had a missed call from Fangtasia. No voicemail. My heart immediately began to beat faster and I got a warm feeling from my head to my toes, all because of the blood bond Eric and I shared. Curiously, I speed dialled the bar back.

"Fangtasia, the bar with a bite. This is Pam," the melancholy female voice said at the other end.

"Pam, it's Sookie."

"Well hello Sookie, how may I help you?" Pam's voice cheered up immediately. Pam was one of the few vampires I would consider kind-hearted, because although she could be a downright nasty bitch, she was always manicured and polite to me, as well as sharing my sense of humour. We got along quite well.

"My cell phone said I had a missed call from the bar, and I was assuming it was Eric?" I said, glancing around to make sure nothing was going to jump out from behind the trees to get me. I seemed safe.

"One minute please." For the first time with Pam, I was put on hold and some I'd never heard before by Elton John began playing. I waited patiently, staring at my fingernails on my lap.

"This is Eric." His voice sent shivers down my spine.

"Eric, it's Sookie. Did you call me earlier today?" I asked right away.

"Of course." Simple answer, no real conclusion.

"Well, why did you call me?"

"Oh, boredom really. We never get that many people on a Monday night, and I was cooped up in my office for an hour with little to do." Eric made a noise that almost sounded like a cough, but wasn't. "I did not feel like sitting in the middle of a room having a crowd of disgusting humans around me, no offence."

"None taken, although, if you were so bored you could have just come to see me."

"I called your home as well, and there was no answer. I am assuming you're at work, or just got off work," he said smoothly.

"I'm on my break." For some reason, I found it hard to believe that Eric would just call me for the sake of calling me.

There was silence for a minute until Eric said, "Sookie, I'd like to take you on a date this evening."

If I had been standing, I probably would've fainted. The question was so surprising and unexpected that I wasn't sure how to answer for a minute. Finally, common sense kicked in.

"No."  
"No?"

"You know I am with Quinn."

Eric chuckled, a deep throated chuckle. "Lover." The word made me shiver horribly. "The tiger does not have to know of this date."

"Eric, would you appreciate it if I was dating you and I decided to go on a date with someone else?" I asked, folding my arms across my chest and glaring at him through the phone as I balanced it on my shoulder.

"I suppose not," he said, anger growing in his voice.

"Then I am not doing so with Quinn."

"If I take you on this one date, I promise that the tiger will not find out. I also promise to be a complete gentleman, unless told otherwise." I could hear the smile growing as he said this. "I will merely take you to dinner, you don't even have to call it a date. There are things I have to discuss with you."

I straightened and grabbed the phone again. "What things?" I asked.

"It's involving the queen."

I moaned audibly, rubbing the bridge of my nose with my thumb and forefinger. "Is it bad?" I mumbled.

"That has yet to be seen." Eric suddenly sounded very serious, a tone that I hated on Eric.

"Fine. I will go only for that reason, to discuss that." I frowned. "Eric, I don't want to be involved in these things anymore. I want a normal life."

Eric chuckled again, the laugh causing my whole body to sigh. "You will never have a normal life again Sookie Stackhouse," he said with full sincerity. "I will pick you up after work, when are you done?"

"Midnight."  
"Until then, lover." He hung up, leaving me to stare at my phone.


	4. 4

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Sookie Stackhouse's character, or the remainder of the characters listed on this website. I have merely created the plot.

**Author's Note: **I'm popping out chapters so fast because this is one of the few stories that I absolutely love writing for, so I will most likely continue writing some in the future. Enjoy the fourth chapter!

Chapter Four

I didn't even realize it was midnight until I noticed an unusually pale guest sitting at a booth in my section. After I collected empty glasses on a tray and collected my tips from a discarded table, I made my way back to the bar and spotted Eric Northman, my _date_, sitting in the booth by the door, waiting patiently for me. I decided to be a polite waitress and ask him if he wanted anything to drink.

"Would you like some TrueBlood?" I asked as I balanced the tray on my hand. Eric looked amazingly tasty tonight in a deep purple paisley button-down shirt with black dress pants and gleaming polished black shoes. His blonde hair was combed back away from his face, and it reminded me of the way Bill styled his hair. Other than that, he looked good enough to eat.

"Kind of you to ask, but I think I can hold off until we get to the restaurant," he said, smiling slightly just to show his fangs.

"What kind of restaurant are we going to exactly? It's midnight, almost everywhere in Bon Temps is closed," I said, shifting the tray to the other hand.

"It's a vampire based restaurant in Shreveport, so I hope you don't mind the late dinner," he said, looking up at me with his blue eyes.

"If it's vampire based, then how will I be able to eat anything there?" I asked curiously, glancing around to see if anyone else needed drinks. Jane Bodehouse, the usual drunk, was left waiting by the bar for her son, and all my other table seemed to be doing fine. I saw Arlene out of the corner of my eye, who would be taking over my shift for the remainder two hours until the bar closed. I could sense her disapproval of me even from the distance we were at, thanks to Barry the bellhop, who was another telepath I had met in Dallas a while ago. Barry and I were able to help one another control our telepathy quite well.

"We'll discuss it in the car," Eric said, glancing over my shoulder to see Arlene by the bar. "I will be waiting by your car." And without another word, Eric stood up to kiss my cheek before walking out the front door swiftly.

I retreated back to the bar and placed the tray down without glancing up at Arlene. Sam noticed the tension, and then suddenly realized something, or so I picked up from his brain.

"Sookie, what happened to your arm?" he asked, pointing at the bandage that was bound around it.

"Oh." I should've sensed that question my entire shift. Then again, it was too busy to even stop and talk to Sam. "Well, to be honest I have no idea. It happened at Tara's party last night. I don't remember seeing you there, Sam."

"Well, I decided against it and I, uh." Sam hesitated as he cast a sideways glance at Arlene, who was not only within hearing range but one of the worst gossipers in town. "Went for a late night run."

I picked up on Sam's shifter clue there, and nodded briskly as I untied my apron and hung it on the hook. I made my way to Sam's office to collect my sweater and purse and was happy as a clam as I felt the cool air hit my face when I walked out the employee entrance. Sure enough, Eric had parked his new car, which appeared to be a Lincoln, beside mine and was leaning against my own.

"I assume you would like to go home and change," he said, uncrossing his arms and leaning over to open my car door for me. I didn't want to ask how he managed to get it unlocked, because I was completely positive that I had locked it before I came in.

"That'd be nice. Is it a casual or fancy restaurant?" I asked, but pressed my lips together into a line as I took note of his outfit again. Definitely fancy.

"I will follow you home, and then we'll take my car to the restaurant," Eric said, climbing into his Lincoln.

I snorted to myself for no reason and climbed into my own car, steering out of Merlotte's and driving down the road on my way back home. I glanced in my rear view mirror to make sure the silver Lincoln was still close behind. It was.

As I turned off Hummingbird Road to my driveway, I felt giddy with excitement. Eric and I had always had that special bond, aside from the blood one we shared, and I naturally felt calmer when I was around him. I merely worried about what he would try to do with the events of tonight's dinner.

Once I was parked in the back and Eric pulled up beside me, I invited him in to wait while I changed. My house was modest and well-kept, thanks not only to my grandmother, who had lived here much longer than I had, but to my roommate from New Orleans, Amelia Broadway. When Eric and I walked in, Amelia was scrubbing away at the dishes in the kitchen, and she jumped a little as she saw Eric. Amelia's short hair was somehow pulled back into a tiny little ponytail with pieces falling out everywhere, and she was wearing plaid flannel pink pyjama bottoms with a grey T-shirt three sizes too big that read _In Football We Trust_ in bold red print on the back.

"Hi." For once, Amelia was shy, which surprised me quite a lot. I nodded and set my purse on the table.

"Eric and I are just going out to dinner," I said, and when she gave me a sceptical look, I reassured her quickly that it was merely to talk.

"Okay, well do you want me to stay up?" she asked, barely casting a glance towards Eric. I knew what she was thinking, since duh – I was a telepath, and Amelia was a clear broadcaster. She was thinking that although Eric was equally as, if not more gorgeous than, Quinn, she didn't approve of him and though cheating was a terrible sin.

"No. Just remember to lock up and leave some sort of light on for me," I said, giving her a look that told her we'd talk about this in the morning.

Amelia put the last dish away and retreated to the living room, and I asked Eric once again if he wanted a drink. He shook his head, so I left to my room to get ready. I didn't spend too much time in the process, but I made myself look good nonetheless. After analyzing whether or not I should wear pants or not, depending on the depth of Eric's car, I opted for a creamy white wrap dress with three-quarter length sleeves and tied at my right hip. I followed that with some black pumps and simple silver jewellery – never mind, switched that to gold. I wouldn't want poor Eric to feel he couldn't even touch me all night. Then again, it would give an excuse to not have him get too intimate with me. I decided to play a trick and changed to white gold instead, similar to silver in colour.

After I was dressed, I went to the bathroom and reapplied my mascara and lipstick, also pulling the elastic out of my hair and combing it out until it lay smoothly over my shoulders in waves. I gathered pieces and fastened them at the back with a banana clip. Satisfied with my reflection, I closed my bedroom door before Bob, Amelia's not-so-animal-like cat, could come in.

Once I came in view with Eric on my way back, he smiled the widest I'd ever seen him smile and took my hand as I was near. "Absolutely beautiful," he said sexily. I shivered and smiled, glancing sideways in the living room to see Amelia's back to us. I left without a word.

The whole drive there, we didn't speak, but I could feel Eric's eyes on me every so often. It made me feel adored, and terrified at the same time. Eric made me feel so calm though, and when we eventually pulled into a parking lot, I was giddy once more.

Eric had taken us to a restaurant that looked absolutely stunning on the outside, and reminded me of the restaurant I had seen one night on an episode of _Hell's Kitchen_ with Gordon Ramsay. According to the sign overlooking the entrance, the restaurant was called Elvira, which I could've laughed hysterically at. Elvira, the "Mistress of the Dark", otherwise known as that stupid horror comedy movie starring Cassandra Peterson as the mistress with her breasts barely staying in place the entire movie. I didn't say a word though as Eric parked the car and shot around to open my door.

"Looks nice," I said, coughing back a laugh as the name still stuck to me.

"Yes, it's one of the most respected vampire restaurants in Louisiana," Eric said strictly, and I pressed my lips together to stop any sign of humour all together.

As we walked in, I could tell right away that the restaurant had been designed by a fangbanger rather than a legit vamp. The walls were alternating black and burgundy vertical stripes with melting candlestick holders protruding out of the walls, and the tables were laid with red tablecloths and had a red candle at each one. The waiters were dressed in all black suits and the waitresses in tight-fitting black pants and blouses. There was a vamp standing at a podium by a red velvet gate that lead into the restaurant. He reminded me of a young Vincent Price with dark wavy hair, dark eyes, a round jaw and a large nose. He was wearing an all black suit as well with a red tie that popped against its dark background.

"Welcome to Elvira," Vincent Price junior said. "My name is Richard (he pronounced it Reesh-ard). Do you have a reservation this evening?"

"Eric Northman, party of two," Eric said, reaching down to grasp my hand gently. I almost pulled away, but when I glanced up at him he gave me a pleading look. I gazed down at the floor instead.

"Right this way, Mr. Northman," Richard said. Obviously he had no idea who Eric was, and I could already tell he was a newer vampire. Probably no later turned than ten years ago.

Richard guided us over to a table in the corner, and held out my chair for me. I thanked him and stood in front of it just as he was pushing it in.

"Someone will be with you momentarily," he said, and scurried off to help the next vampire couple that came in.

I closed my eyes for a minute to count the humans or supes in the restaurant. There was a human chef in the kitchen, three human waiters, and even a witch waitress. When I opened my eyes, Eric was staring at me intently.

"We'll talk while we wait for the food to arrive, lover," he murmured, reaching across to stroke my hand. I shot it back.

"Eric, this isn't a date, remember?" I said. Part of me already thought _oh hell with it, this is a date_, but I stuck to my morals.

Eric grinned and was about to speak, but I felt the buzz of a human brain coming towards us. The waiter was about two years younger than me with tawny hair and hazel eyes. He looked nervous to see Eric, but smiled when he saw me.

"Hello, my name's Patrick and I'll be your server for the evening," he said in a very adolescent voice. "What can I get you two for starters, drinks?"

"A TrueBlood for me," Eric said, never taking his eyes off of mine. I nervously turned away to blush and sputtered around in my mind for a minute.

"Um, do you serve champagne cocktails?" I asked, my hands tightening in a ball in my lap.

"We do miss, would you like a cherry or an olive with your drink?" he asked.

"A cherry, I suppose."

"I will be back shortly." Patrick sped off to the bar to retrieve our drinks, leaving Eric to sit and stare at me.

"Quit it," I snapped.

"Quit it?"

"You're staring at me."

Eric laughed softly. "You are beautiful, Sookie, why would I not stare?"

I blushed deeply and was relieved when Patrick returned with our drinks, along with a menu for me and a smaller menu for Eric. "I will return shortly," he said and left again.

Curiously, I glanced down at my menu then up at Eric's. "Why do you have a menu? You can't eat anything, can you?" I asked, frowning up at him.

Eric smiled and slid the menu in my direction so I could look. "It's not much, take a look."

I glanced down and was immediately disgusted at what I read. There were four sections to the menu; entrees, desserts, beverages and livestock. Livestock. I read that section over thoroughly and regretted that I did. The livestock section included a variety of twenty willing fangbangers who would come out and allow the vampire to feed off of them for an extended period of time. I didn't understand, however, why a vampire would spend twenty dollars to suck on a worthless willing human when they could have the opportunity to chase their meal for free. Livestock also included a variety of live animals to choose from, which just disgusted me.

The most fascinating thing on the menu were the entrees and desserts. The chef had cleverly created a handful of interesting recipes all blood based. This included things such as blood pudding, ground flesh with blood sauce, and a blood basted human foot. It was absolutely disgusting, but creative.

I pushed his menu back to him with a grimace, causing him to grin, and glanced down at my own menu. Of course, humans did not normally eat in this restaurant, yet there was much more to choose from than there had been on the vampire menu. I had decided to get a deliciously sounding chicken Caesar salad.

As Patrick came back to take our orders and menus, he also brought some bread for me to munch on, and a peculiar red gelatine for Eric to eat. It reminded me of cherry Jell-O, only thicker and opaque. When Patrick took our menus, I quizzically looked at Eric.

"It's blood Jell-O. Fairly disgusting, if you ask me, but I eat it to be polite," Eric said, taking a spoon and trimming off a corner piece to pop in his mouth. He and I both scrunched our noses in unison as he popped it in his mouth. I admired Eric for cleaning his plate, despite the taste, and ate only two pieces of bread for myself.

"Are we going to discuss this now?" I asked, the dim candlelight flickering over Eric's features as I stared at him.

Eric leaned into his seat and took both of my hands in his, looking at me deeply. "Sookie, Sophie-Anne is in danger once more," he said softly.

I moaned and fell back in my seat. "Why do I need to be involved in this, Eric?" I asked. I had done enough bidding for Sophie-Anne, and even saved her life, even if the loss of her legs was the outcome of the Pyramid of Gizeh incident. When the Fellowship of the Sun had made a plan to destroy the hotel and the inhabitants in it, Barry the bellboy and I had risked life and limb to get as many vamps as we could out. We had also run away from the city after the discovery of our special talent had been released to the authorities when we had helped find survivors using our mind.

"Have I ever told you about the King of New York?" Eric asked.

I shook my head. As far as Kings and Queens of states went, I was only vaguely familiar with the more Southern states, and I had no knowledge that more Northern ones had existed.

"Well, the King of New York is one of the seldom authorities who own the more Northern states, considering there are only two others; the Queen of Maine and the King of North Dakota. We rarely converse with these three because there has never been much need to speak to them, since they are further away from us." Eric paused as a waitress walked by, humming away to herself. "Over a hundred years ago, Sophie-Anne and the King of New York, Errol McKirdy, had had a mild dispute over the property of Louisiana. It seems that Errol was desperately seeking to own one of the bigger states in the south, and had little luck with Threadgill." Eric was referring to the deceased King of Arkansas, and I nodded my head to tell him to continue.

"Errol is a liar, to sum up. He is a traitor among the authorities of state, and a murderer at that. He was once married to a beautiful vampire who had no authority whatsoever, a stupid move, and murdered her a day after because he was bored with her. He is known to appear to be the sweetest man you've ever met, but can shove a stake through your back the minute you turn from him."

"Have you ever met Errol?" I asked.

"I haven't," Eric said, leaning back in his seat as he watched me intently ripping a piece of bread off. "This leads us to the situation. One night, Errol had become furious that he knew very little about the Southern states and those who run them, and therefore made a journey down to visit Threadgill. Of course, at the time, Threadgill did not want to be of shared ownership with any other state. Errol and Threadgill fought to near death over the state of Arkansas, and this is when Errol made a plan with Threadgill."

I could sense where the story was going, and my heart sank almost audibly.

Eric continued. "Errol told Threadgill that if he could somehow find a way to join forces with Sophie-Anne, even wed her, and take over her land, he would award Threadgill with the unmarked states of Idaho, Ohio and Minnesota as their king. These three states do not have a king or queen, you see. Therefore, Threadgill was amazed by this. Of course, he wanted to have equal power over Louisiana as well…" I held up my hand to ask Eric to pause.

"Let me get this straight," I said, folding my hands on the table. "Are you telling me that Peter Threadgill's plan with the battle was not for his own use so to speak, and Errol planned the entire attack because he wanted custody of Louisiana? Therefore, Peter was, in a way, innocent?"

"The man was not innocent," Eric hissed, his fangs extending in anger. "He attempted to murder our queen out of pure greed. He deserved his death."

I thought that over for a minute, and silently agreed. "Okay, he deserved it," I said. "What does any of this have to do with current situations?"

Eric held a hand to pause as Patrick came back to drop off our meals. My salad was steaming with chicken, and I took a bite to test it. It was delicious. Eric had ordered only another glass of TrueBlood. Once Patrick was out of hearing range again, Eric continued.

"It seems that Sophie-Anne only just heard of this last week, and a few days ago, Errol contacted her by sending his most respected guard down to send her a message. Her name is Feodora Hershmit, and she is almost as bloodthirsty as Errol himself."

"What was the message?" I asked between bites of salad.

"To warn the queen of an upcoming attack within the next month."

I froze with my mouth opened and a fork pierced with romaine lettuce and chicken nearing my mouth. I set the fork down and stared at Eric.

"There's going to be a war?"

"It appears to be so," Eric said, sipping his TrueBlood as his eyes sparkled with excitement at the thought.

I didn't know how to react. More than anything, I was confused. "Why does Sophie-Anne need me then? What will a telepath do in a battle against vampires?"

Eric reached over to take my hand, squeezing it softly. "I am going to escort you to New York next week, and we are going to spy near Errol's headquarters disguised as guests of New York in order to have further information on this attack, so we may report back to the queen in order for preparation to begin," he said.

That was _a lot_ of information to take in within thirty seconds. I swallowed and stared at Eric with wide eyes. This was the scariest thing I had ever done for the vampires. Ever.

"Only you?" I asked.

"Yes," Eric said, running his thumb over my knuckles as his other hand raised his glass to his lips. "Sookie, you will be completely safe, I promise you. And you will not have to be involved in this war."

I moved my hand back and stared down at my lap, frowning in thought. Without a doubt, this was the biggest chance for me to face my death. By disguising myself as a spy and invading the headquarters of Errol McKirdy, I was sure to be nearing death. Especially since he was most likely the most dangerous vampire in all of America.

"What will I be getting as a reward for this?" I asked.

"Sophie-Anne has already written a cheque for one hundred grand."

I stared at him with the widest eyes I could manage. That was an enormous pay. I didn't even think five years of working at Merlotte's would add up to such an amount. With the money, I would be able to upgrade furniture, find myself a new home, and even help Amelia with finding herself a home of her own as well.

"Okay."

"Okay what?" Eric asked, as he had been staring at me intently as I thought this through.

"I will assist Sophie-Anne with this one last task," I said, taking a deep breath. "However, if she ever asks me to do something for her again, I will tell her to shove it where the sun don't shine."

Eric grinned and chuckled. "She will be pleased to hear your agreement, lover," he said.

After Eric had paid the bill and left a hefty tip for the waiter – who had not only been very kind and efficient but had known exactly when we needed privacy and left us alone – we slid back into Eric's Lincoln and he steered us back towards Bon Temps. I checked the digital clock on Eric's dashboard as we were driving back. It read quarter after three. I sighed, but felt relieved that I wasn't due in for work tomorrow. I had a lot to think about tonight while I slept.

Once we arrived back in Bon Temps, I climbed out of the car without assistance from Eric and was making my way groggily back towards the porch, but was caught off guard as Eric's hands grabbed my waist, spinning me to face him. Before I could ask what the hell he was doing, his mouth was on mine.

Automatically, my brain told me to back off and think of Quinn, but my heart and… other body areas… told me to keep going. My arms swung around Eric's neck and my body pressed against his, gasping as he nudged my head aside forcefully to trail his soft kisses down the side of my neck. My throat made a horrible moan, horrible because I wasn't supposed to be enjoying this. Not at all.

"Lover, it has been so long," Eric murmured against my ear, causing a familiar tingle to run from my head to my toes. I took a lock of Eric's hair and gave it a gentle but firm yank, which excited him and caused his fangs to run out.

"This is wrong," I said as his fingers massaged my breasts and he kicked his car door shut with his foot. We were walking back towards the porch and before I knew it, I was pressed between Eric and the door, our mouths on one another once again. I knew I shouldn't be doing this, but I had forgotten how great of a kisser Eric really was. He opened the door and closed it behind us softly to not wake Amelia.

"If you don't want this, then rescind my invitation," he growled audibly, swinging me into his arms and moving so fast that it was only two seconds later when I realized he had carried me to my bedroom. The door shut behind him and I was pressed against it once more, his fangs running along the spot between my neck and shoulder.

I gasped again. My brain was screaming at me to stop, but my body was moving against him so much that it was hard to concentrate on my thoughts. Eric's hands grabbed the tie at the side of my body and tore it off, opening the dress to expose my white lace bra and panties. Thanks to the tanning bed at the video store, it made a lovely contrast on my skin.

Eric stood there to admire me for a moment, smiling, before her reached behind my head to gently remove the banana clip. Everything was happening so fast yet so slow that I barely knew what to do. I decided to work on Eric's belt, and slid that off with more ease than usual. The pants were next, and then I began unbuttoning his shirt as his mouth moved to my breast to kiss me through my bra.

We were both breathing heavily by this point, which was surprising for Eric – he didn't breathe at all. Once both of us were completely naked, we stood to stare at each other in the pale moonlight that came in through my window. I was stunned – I had almost forgotten what an amazing body Eric had. He must have been thinking the same for me, because in that instance, he had taken me into his arms, fallen back on the bed with me, and we performed the familiar routine that had occurred between us months ago. This time, Eric wasn't wiped of his memory; he would clearly remember this for ages. And, as long as we're telling the truth here, I could've sworn I heard Eric murmur an _I love you_ against my breast halfway through our routine.


	5. 5

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Sookie Stackhouse's character, or the remainder of the characters listed on this website. I have merely created the plot.

**Author's Note:** Thank you so much for the reviews everyone, and yes I did get a few complaints that the sex scene in the last chapter wasn't overly descriptive. But don't worry, if you like that, there will be some further on as well. Next chapter, I'm so glad everyone likes it so far so it seems! Also, I noticed that in one of the chapters I said the time was around the beginning of September, but I meant to say October. It's relevant to this chapter, I suppose. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter Five

Nine hours later, I woke up alone in a tangle of bed sheets and my body sprawled out against most of the bed. I had a familiar ache near the lower region of my body and the sun was streaming in through the crack of the curtains in the windows of my bedroom. I was completely aware that I was fully naked, and I saw my hair strewn out around the pillows in the corner of my eye. I knew what happened last night, remembered it completely, and my heart sank. A knot tied in my stomach and I felt near tears at the realization of what I had just done; I had cheated on Quinn with Eric.

I sat up and gathered the white sheets with pretty yellow flowers scattered all over them towards my chest, swinging my legs over the edge of the bed and slipping my feet into the lavender slippers Amelia had given me as a replacement for the ratty ones I had. I wrapped the sheets around my body like a toga and looked around the room, looking for any sign of Eric's disappearance. It was then I noticed a white piece of paper folded down on the mirror by my door. I walked over to it, noticing it had my name written in a familiar scrawl. I took it off the tape that was securing it and opened it to read the inside:

_Last night was the wonderful, lover. Now I understand why I have these emotions for you. It scares me, I will admit this, but we shall talk about it later. I will be working tonight._

_E_

I closed the note and tucked it under a jewellery box that was on the table underneath the mirror. Eric's letter made me feel immensely better, but nothing would wash the guilt out of my system. I frowned as I threw the sheets back onto the bed and went to the private bathroom off of my room to shower. While showering, my mind twirled into the memory of the moment Eric and I had shared in this very shower. I felt the tingle shiver down my body once more.

Once I was showered, had my hair dried and combed and had dressed into jeans and a pretty baby blue silk camisole, I went downstairs to prepare some food. It was almost one in the afternoon, and Amelia was wide awake making some B.L.T. sandwiches when I walked into the kitchen.

"Afternoon," she said, turning pieces of bacon over in the skillet. "How was last night?"

"It wasn't a date," I said as I noticed the sceptical look she gave me.

"I was awake, Sookie." Amelia turned her attention to slice the tomatoes, her eyes never meeting mine. "I heard you and Eric going upstairs, and then… you know."

I frowned and blushed deeply, preparing myself a cup of coffee. "I – It was a mistake, Amelia. A foolish one at that," I said as my fingers wrapped around a coffee mug.

"You will have to tell Quinn, you know that, right?" she said as she turned to face me. Her lips were turned down into a frown, and her short hair was fanned out around her face softly. She looked just like someone who was going to their kid's elementary school for a parent-teacher interview.

"I don't think I can," I said, my eyes watering up. I was very fond of Quinn, as he was of me. We had not completely had an intimate moment yet, and with his work getting in the way of our relationship most of the time, I wasn't sure we would. He was loveable, kind-hearted, and dating him wouldn't completely cause my life to be in risk as it would with Eric.

"Sookie, you have to," Amelia said, taking out the whole grain sandwich buns from the bread box. "He has to know the truth and you have to figure out who you would rather be with; Eric or Quinn, if Quinn still wants to be with you."

I nodded, and then remembered the conversation Eric and I had had last night. I debated on whether or not I should tell Amelia, and decided I should. I filled her in on all the details about Errol and the battle that would most likely take place within the next month, and what I was forced to do for the queen. Along with the reasonable pay cheque.

"One hundred thousand dollars!" Amelia squealed, setting down the knife and turning to me. "Just to take a plane to New York and disguising yourself with Eric, and listening in to others thoughts?"

I nodded. "It's a lot of money though, and I know the first thing I would do with it would be to help you find a place of your own," I said.

Amelia smiled. "That's sweet of you Sookie, but I think an upgrade of furniture in your house would be more important. That reminds me, though! I got an email from someone today. An aunt of mine who lives in Phoenix, Arizona. I didn't even know she was alive, but there she is."

"What did she say?"

"She told me that she was sorry for my loss and that if I needed a place to stay I was welcome to come and stay with her and her husband for a while until I can manage on my own."

I frowned at the thought. Amelia and I had grown very close over her stay here for the past few months, and I wasn't sure I would completely get used to being home alone again. I wasn't family though, of course, and Amelia deserved to be with blood relatives.

"That's great, Amelia," I said truthfully, helping her prepare the B.L.T.'s

It was my day off, and I was happy to find out that Amelia thought it would be a fun idea if we went down to the pumpkin patch in Clarice. It reminded me of my childhood when Gran would bring Jason and me there to pick out pumpkins, then bring them home and carve them a few days before Halloween.

I agreed, and after we cleaned up the dishes, I went upstairs to change into something warmer. Louisiana didn't get excruciatingly cold until late October, but the breeze was nippy and the trees were already beginning to change colour. I kept my jeans on, and slid a navy blue long sleeve cardigan that buttoned up over my shoulders along with some worn out runners. I remembered the pumpkin patches were also very muddy whenever we had gone before, so I refrained from wearing my better runners or nicer shoes.

Once we were both dressed, we took my car and drove the short drive towards Clarice, cranking up a Led Zeppelin song that I actually enjoyed. The breeze was cool, as I had suspected, and by the time we had reached the pumpkin patch it was almost three in the afternoon.

We parked by the haystacks that made a wall around the pumpkin patch, and noticed how many kids were here with their parents. Naturally, this was more of a kid-friendly area, but we couldn't resist.

"I'd love to get some pumpkins as decorations for the house, and even eat the pumpkin seeds roasted," Amelia said, licking her lips at the thought as she waited for me to lock the car.

"The apple cider here is good too, I remember," I said as I shut the car door behind me.

We walked into the entrance, which was a large archway made of sturdy twigs and dried corn, and took in the surroundings. By the far end of the patch was a hayride with a large tractor pulling a wagon with hay seats, a normal finding in a pumpkin patch. There was scatters of wooden huts that served as various stands selling apple pies, cider, pumpkin pies, pre-carved jack-o-lantern's, corn and Halloween decorations. There was also a huge red barn by one side that had a ramp leading inside. I remembered that the barn held farm animals in stables that you could feed and pet.

While Amelia hurried off towards the hayride, which made me laugh, I wandered around the stands absentmindedly. I would usually eat Gran's homemade apple pies, but since she was no longer alive, I didn't have the recipe. The pies sold here looked equally delicious, and I bought two that were carried in pristine white boxes with a tie to keep them together. I carried the boxes by the string and bought a pumpkin pie to add to the pile, before looking over the stands with Halloween decorations.

We spent nearly three hours at the pumpkin patch, and which time it was getting very dark. I knew the vampires were already awake by now.

"We should go through the maze before we leave," Amelia suggested, pointing a finger towards the tall corn stalks that made up the maze.

"Sure." I went out to the car to put the pies and decorations I had bought, along with Amelia's four big pumpkins, into the trunk of the car. We then paid the two dollar fee to go through the maze, and I saw Amelia laugh like a little girl and dart through the twists and turns immediately, leaving me to stand at a split trail by myself.

The breeze had grown considerably colder, and I hugged myself as I wandered through the maze, my feet crunching against the broken corn stalks and hay. I froze suddenly as I heard a noise to my left.

It was fully dark by now, and I could barely see where I was going. I closed my eyes and let my mind wander through the maze area. There were only two other people in the maze not including Amelia and me, and they were further into the depths of the maze. There was one blank spot, and I froze. A vampire.

"Boo," a cool voice said in my ear, and I screamed automatically, turning to hit the voice's owner with my arm. A clean white hand stopped it, and I looked up into the face of the white vampire with rippling blonde hair and blue, blue eyes.

"You scared the hell out of me, what the fuck is wrong with you?" I snapped, pounding on Eric's chest with my fists.

Eric chuckled and took the beating before grasping my waist and pulling me hard against him, his lips kissing me with such force that I thought my lips might fall off. "I didn't mean to frighten you, lover," he cooed.

"Shut up for a minute," I moaned, my arms winding up around his neck. Eric immediately took the hint and gathered me into his arms, one hand deep in my hair and other grasping my lower waist. He was grinding me against him, and if we weren't in a children's maze in a pumpkin patch, I would've done unthinkable things to him right there.

I got my common sense knocked back into me, and pulled away from him. "Last night was wrong," I said coldly, my arms crossing over my chest.

Eric tilted his head. "Wrong? Even though you were chanting yes over and over to me, and pulling me in more so I could push deeper into you? That was wrong?" he said.

I blushed and rubbed my arm with my other hand. "Well, no, I mean, it was very, very good. But it was a wrong thing to do. I cheated, Eric. I've never cheated on anyone before." Then again, I hadn't had many boyfriends.

"Sookie," Eric said softly, and it was the first time I heard emotion in his voice. "I see how you feel when around me, and I see how you feel when you are around the tiger. Respectfully, I belong to you. He does not."  
I frowned and kicked at a pile of hay on the ground. "I don't know what to do," I said.

"You must think about that on your own time, lover." Eric dusted his dark jeans off from invisible dirt. "In other news, I have spoken to Sophie-Anne about our mission."

"And?"

Eric smiled and slid his arm around my waist, walking us through the maze. "Sophie-Anne has instructed that we leave tomorrow at seven p.m. at Anubis once again. We will arrive in New York around four in the morning the next day. You realize that once we land, I must be rushed to the hotel where we will be staying because dawn is at five thirty. I am risking my life to sit with you on the plane, Sookie." He smiled with his fangs extended.

"You don't have to –"

"But I must," he said, his hands grasping mine. "You must pack your bags with a weeks worth of clothes at least, as well."

"Wait a minute," I said, stepping back. "Why aren't you at Fangtasia?"

"I came to give you this news," he said.

"But you could've called me, or left me a voicemail."  
Eric chuckled. "So impersonal, lover."

I glared at Eric silently and started making my way back towards the entrance of the maze, ignoring him completely. Halfway on my way back, I got lost.

"Sookie, we must discuss the details of the trip still. Perhaps we should go back to your home," Eric said, appearing in front of me in a flash.

I sighed. I was tired, wanted to have a nice long bath and I wanted nothing else to do with vampires. Period. But the pay cheque from the Queen of Louisiana was the best one I would ever receive ever, and the idea of updating all of Gran's old furniture was exciting.

"Fine," I said, giving up completely. "Would you like to get us out of here please?"

Eric silently scooped me up into his arms romantically and floated into the air slightly, staying low against the top of the maze as he floated over towards the entrance. I completely forgot Eric could fly as he set me down near the entrance so we could both walk out.

Amelia was waiting for me by the entrance, resting on a hay bundle with her chin in her hands. She smiled as she saw me then frowned as Eric walked out.

"What are you doing here?" she asked him, her arms to her sides.

"I'm here to talk to Sookie about an important business matter," he answered, sounding like someone who was trying to sell me knives.

Amelia rolled her eyes but strode past us towards the parking lot. I lead Eric out and told him to sit in the backseat. He thought this was hysterical and broke out laughing, but when I held a serious face, he mumbled and climbed in. I checked my rear view mirror while Amelia slid into the passenger seat up front, and choked back a laugh at seeing Eric sitting scrunched up in the back sit, his knees to his chest and a pissed off look on his face that reminded me of a ten-year-old boy.

We drove in silence back home, but I could hear Amelia's thoughts on what she thought of Eric at the moment, which wasn't anything positive. Eric's mind was completely blank, considering I can't hear the thoughts of vampires, so I clued in on him for a while. The space of his brain relaxed me immediately.

Once the car was parked in the driveway, the three of us climbed out and went up the porch to the kitchen. I threw my keys in the ceramic bowl where Amelia and I kept our car keys by the back door, and asked Eric if he would like some TrueBlood. He accepted and I began heating up a bottle for him in the microwave while he sat down at the kitchen table. Amelia walked right past the kitchen to the living room, and few minutes later I heard the television turn on to a rerun of Friends.

"So, what's going on tomorrow?" I asked, turning my back to him to rummage through the fridge for some dinner. I decided on having some leftover pasta salad from a few nights ago, and waited until Eric's TrueBlood was warm before I popped it in.

"Well, tonight I would like you to pack your bags, and it would be helpful if I could assist you, considering I know what types of outfits you should be wearing exactly," he said. I nodded in agreement, since that seemed reasonable.

"Then, if there are outfits missing, I will put a tab at your friends store so you may pick out any other outfits." Eric paused to take a long sip from the bottle of synthetic blood. "Also, during the day time tomorrow, I would like you to go to the costume store in Shreveport and pick out a disguise for yourself. Nothing over the top though, please. No sparkly wigs or enormous pink sunglasses or what ever strange outfit you find."

I laughed out loud and took my salad out of the microwave, sitting across from Eric to eat it. "I'll make sure not to," I said.

"Also, Pam and I will be here to pick you up at seven o'clock sharp, as we need to be on the plane no later than eight-thirty. It would be earlier, however dusk only begins at six-thirty."

"Pam is coming as well?" I said. I liked Pam, we got along, but I admit that my heart sank slightly at the idea of not being alone with Eric.

"No, she is merely dropping us off at the airport," he said, his long fingers drumming the sides of his bottle. Suddenly, his face turned very serious. "Between the time I leave tonight and the time we leave tomorrow together, I think it would be wise to analyze your relationship with the tiger and decide what you are going to do."

I frowned. Almost as if on cue, my cell phone buzzed. I checked it; there was a voicemail. I opened the phone and punched in the correct numbers to check it.

"Babe," Quinn's voice purred at the other end. "I'll be done work tonight, if you'd like I can stop by after, but it would be late. Probably midnight, I'm guessing. I miss you, and it'll be nice to spend the night with you." I could hear the smile in his voice, which made me frown more. "I'll stop by around midnight." He hung up.

"Quinn's going to be here at midnight," I told Eric, whose eyes were blazing into mine as I listened to the voicemail.

"Perfect opportunity." Eric stood up to signal he was leaving now. "I don't think he would approve of you leaving with me for a week."

I thought of something, and stood up to take the empty bottle to the sink to rinse out. "Will Bill be coming?" I asked.

Eric glanced at me questionably. "No, but he's aware that we're going together. He sounded angry when Pam told him so, apparently. Do you still have feelings for him?"  
I laughed. Bill and I had shared history, but after Eric had forced him to tell me that Bill had been sent here by Sophie-Anne to try and seduce me for her own use, I dropped all feelings I ever felt for him. "Of course I don't. Plus, it doesn't help that I punched his girlfriend in the nose apparently the other night."

Eric beamed. "Good for you. I will be back later," he said, and with a brush of his cool lips against my cheek, he exited the house.

I didn't speak to Amelia the rest of the night, which was fine with me – Bob, the not-so-human cat, seemed to be more eager to be around me than around her as well. I went upstairs to tidy my room and remake my bed, and then had a long bubble bath before Quinn arrived.

Ten minutes to midnight, Amelia finally spoke to me, telling me she was going to bed early. I said goodnight in return and got dressed into some dark grey cotton shorts and a plain white T-shirt, letting my hair loose as I sat at the kitchen table, nervously sipping on a peach tea while I waited for Quinn.

Fifteen minutes later, the headlights of a big truck flashed in the windows of my house as Quinn pulled up. He knocked on the door a few seconds later and I went to answer it, opening it wide. My heart broke a little at the sight.

Quinn was standing in the doorway wearing a pale blue T-shirt and black jeans with shiny dress shoes, holding a bouquet of purple pansies. I blushed deeply, since it was the same flower I had compared with Quinn's eye colour.

"Babe," he said with a wide smile, swinging his arms around me and spinning me around. My eyes welled up with tears as Quinn placed me back on the ground, his big hands taking my chin and kissing me on the lips.

I almost accepted the kiss, but pulled away with a frown. Quinn's smile disappeared.

"We have to talk," I said in a voice so quiet it was almost a whisper.

I took Quinn's hand and lead him into the living room, sitting him on the couch and taking the seat next to him, my elbows resting on my knees and my hands clasped together tightly.

"I have something to tell you," I said, my fingers tensing in a knot. Quinn placed the bouquet on the table and motioned with his hands to continue.

"Tomorrow, I'm leaving to New York with Eric." The name made Quinn's hands tense, and I could feel his brainwaves grow more snarled than usual. "I'm doing one last favour for the queen, and I'll be leaving for a week or two."

Quinn smiled. "That's it babe? Come on, I can trust you –"

I held up a hand to stop him. "That's the smallest detail," I said, my heart pounding in my chest. "The other night, Eric took me out to dinner to discuss this plan." I paused and swallowed a gulp of air. "Eric and I had sex."

Quinn's whole body tensed up and his eyes glazed over just slightly. He didn't speak for five full minutes, just sitting there staring past me with his hands knotted together and his lips pressed into a line.

After the five minutes, he relaxed. "We're breaking up," he said, but it came out more of a question than a statement.

"We're breaking up," I repeated, my eyes on the ground.

Quinn looked as if he was about to burst into an angry fit, but relaxed again. "I'm extremely upset that you cheated on me," he said through his teeth, his eyes showing me that anger. "But I am going to assume he made the first move, not you."

I thought that over for a minute. Eric had made the first move, as usual. I nodded.

"Then, I hope we can still stay friends," he asked, his hands engulfing both of mine.

"Maybe, after a while," I said, frowning at him. "Now, it hurts too much. I still care about you, despite what I did with Eric. If I continue seeing you right now, it will be too hard on me, and I'm sure it will be even harder on you."

"You're right." Quinn frowned and reached over to hand me the bouquet. "I still want you to have these, and I want you to know you were probably the first girl I really fell for so quickly."

I smiled as a tear streamed down my cheek. Quinn reached over to lick it, his rough tongue causing shivers down my back. Then his head turned just slightly and our lips met for a final kiss. We both held it for a minute, never opening our mouths, and pulled apart with tears in our eyes.

"Please don't hate me," I said through choked tears.

Quinn smiled, stood up and kissed my cheek once more. "I could never hate you," he murmured, and walked out the front door without another word.

The minute the door closed, I broke down into tears.

***

After crying for what seemed like hours, but turned out to be only twenty minutes, I went upstairs to wipe my face from the tears streaks and dab my eyes. I pulled my hair into a high ponytail and went across the hall to my old bedroom to pull out the three suitcases that I had shoved in the closet there, over the hidey hole Bill had used when we were still a couple. I dragged the suitcases across the hall and opened them, leaving on the floor in front of my closet and drawers. I heard a tap at the window, and turned to see Eric floating in the air by it, a smile on his lips. He stopped smiling immediately as he noticed I had been crying.

I got up and went over to the window to let him in, the cool breeze tickling my skin as it opened. Eric slid in feet first and landed in front me, staring down at me as he closed the window behind him.

"How did it go?" he asked calmly.

"We broke up," I said, more tears coming in my eyes. I knew Eric was never fond of the fact I had been dating Quinn, but he bent down to kiss my forehead and wipe my tears away with his thumbs.

"Let's pack, that will cheer you up, will it not?" he said softly. I nodded a bit and turned back towards the closet. Thoughts of Quinn's heartbreakingly sweet goodbye still lingered in my head, but I stored it to the back of my thoughts as we packed.

After one hour going through my outfits, Eric had packed two cocktail dresses I had worn ages ago, two pairs of jeans, a silky dress top, a black skirt, some sleepwear, and even selected my under things, which he took extra special time picking out as I rolled my eyes while folding the clothes into the suitcases. He then told me he would put a five hundred dollar tab at Tara Togs as I was putting some paperbacks into the suitcase and shoving in other necessities (toothpaste, toothbrush, comb, etc.).

"I have to attend to the bar," he said when it was nearing three a.m. I nodded and after giving him a kiss on the cheek, which he returned, he slid out of the window and retreated into the dark. I shoved the suitcases onto the floor by my closet, zipped them up, and climbed into the warmth of my bed. Before turning out the lamp, I reminded myself mentally to call Merlotte's tomorrow and tell Sam about my trip, as well as make sure Amelia would be okay on her own in the house for a while. Without another thought left in my head, I drifted into a deep sleep easily.


	6. 6

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Sookie Stackhouse's character, or the remainder of the characters listed on this website. I have merely created the plot.

**Author's Note: **I received so many wonderful reviews not even within 12 hours time! I'm so happy everyone is enjoying the story so far, keep it up and let me know what you think of each chapter. Here's the next one, it gets even better. PS: Sorry for the little delay with this chapter, I would have had it up sooner but I got sidetracked this weekend.

* * *

Chapter Six

"Again, Sookie?"

"Yes, Sam. I'm sorry, but you know I need the money."

I was standing in front of the bar at Merlotte's talking to Sam. It was nearing three p.m., and I had been awake since eight in the morning doing laundry, mowing the lawn, and anything else that I thought would be necessary to keep me occupied. I wasn't scheduled to work today, but I knew that I had been scheduled to work every day for the next week. How ironic.

Sam rubbed at his forehead and placed his other hand on the bar, sighing a little. Sam always looked good in my opinion. He had red blonde hair that made a halo of frizz around his face, and although he wasn't much taller than me, he was very strong. He was wearing a plaid button up shirt left open over a Merlotte's T-shirt and dark jeans. His forearm muscles tightened at each rub, and I couldn't help but stare a little.

"You know, if you were any other employee or a new girl, I would be screaming my head off at you right now," he said, grinning as he reached under the bar for the black rag that he used to rub the bar down to its peak of a shine.

I blushed and nodded quickly, almost jumping over the bar to swing my arms around his neck and hug him. "You are the best boss I've ever had, you know that?"

Sam laughed. "Yeah, yeah. What are you going to New York for anyway?" he asked, one eyebrow arched questioningly.

I let Sam in on the details of Errol in a hushed voice, and he widened his eyes and looked angry at the right parts during the story. I made sure that every time Arlene came to collect an order from the kitchen I would switch to another story about my morning or what I got in the mail today. I knew Arlene would be even more so judgemental over my plans with the vamps, and I didn't need her to gossip to everyone else either; especially the Fellowship of the Sun.

"Well." Sam paused as Arlene walked up, who ignored me completely and asked Sam for a beer. He poured one, slid it over the bar to Arlene, and waited until she was out of hearing range before he continued. "Just be careful, Sookie. God knows you've been involved in way too many vampire-related events this year."

I nodded and checked my watch, realizing I had to get to Tara Togs before it closed at five. "Look, I'll see you when I get back, okay Sam?" I said. His brain told me he was thinking if he would ever see me again. I came around the bar and hugged him.

"Cher, you're a great waitress and a greater friend," he said, looking down at me. "Be careful up there."

I smiled and kissed his cheek. "I will." Without another word, I went back out the bar with a wave at Hoyt and Holly, who were talking quietly in the corner and to my car so I could drive down to Tara Togs.

Tara wasn't that busy, to my delight, and smiled happily at me as I walked into the store, the little bell hanging over the door tingling gently.

"Hey there, Sook!" Tara was always perfectly dressed, and today she was wearing a white suit with black piping right from her store with a bright red tank top underneath and towering three-inch red heels.

"Hey Tara. I understand that I have a tab here, I guess?" I asked, thumbing through a pile of pamphlets on the counter absentmindedly.

"I think so." Tara typed away at the little computer at the counter, and then smiled as she found whatever she was looking for. "Yup, five hundred dollars worth. What do you need exactly?"

I explained to Tara what I needed – a new suit, two more cocktail dresses, a gown, and some lingerie. Eric had added the new lingerie to my list for no specific reason except for pure spite, but I did need some new bras anyway.

Tara gave me a beautiful navy suit with a skirt instead of pants, and I was thrilled when I tried it on. It had very faint lighter blue vertical pinstripes, and made my body look extremely curvy. I told Tara I would get the beautiful suit, and picked up some tan hose to wear with them as well.

Next were cocktail dresses. Tara showed a variety of new ones that I had come, which had so little fabric that I declined immediately. By almost four-thirty, we had gotten every outfit I had been asked to get, and the bill only came to four hundred and two dollars. I picked up more lingerie to add to the collection.

"How is everything with Quinn?" Tara asked as she was wrapping a cocktail dress in tissue paper and putting it in a bag.

I hesitated and looked down at the clothes she was wrapping. "Well, we kind of broke up last night," I mumbled.

Tara frowned halfway through putting the suit in a plastic bag. "I'm sorry to hear that. Quinn was a real nice guy," she said. Thanks to Tara, I now felt twenty times worse about the break up with Quinn. I nodded anyway.

Once everything was neatly wrapped and given to me in bags, I told Tara I would see her soon and retreated to the car. I then made my quick trip to the costume store in Shreveport, remembering last minute that Eric had told me to go there for a disguise.

After an extra ten minutes spent looking at a town map on the side of the road to try and find the street it was on, I pulled up to the costume shop. It stood on its own by a highway road surrounded by a few tall trees whose leaves were already orange in colour. I parked beside a beat-up old Camaro and climbed out of my car, looking up at the store. Its sign read the store name, which was Master of Disguise, and there were displays of mannequins dressed in a Catwoman costume, a Winnie the Pooh costume, and a harlequin outfit.

I pushed open the door to the shop as gently as I could. The shop was extremely cluttered with bars of Halloween costumes hanging up, glass cases of masks and other essentials, and about four rows of twenty wigs behind the counter that stood at the back. A teenager was working, about eighteen in age, with curly blonde hair and green eyes. His skin was very tan, even darker than mine, and he had been forced to wear a costume to promote the store by his manager. Therefore, he was dressed as the Phantom of the Opera.

"Hi there," I said as I came up to the counter. "I'm Sookie Stackhouse, and I was wondering if you could help me."

The teenager looked up from the magazine he had been reading and glanced over at a note tacked to the board behind his head. "Sookie Stackhouse. I guess whatever you buy today has already been paid for by Eric Northman. Can I see some I.D.?"

I was shocked to hear that Eric had paid for this as well, and went into my purse to pull out my driver's license. The teenager, whose nametag read Luke, looked over the license and then handed it back to me.

"What can I help you with?" he asked.

"Well, I need a pretty good to disguise," I said, looking over his head at the rows of wigs. "I'll need to try some of those on, I guess."

"Those are the fake ones," he said, pointing to the first two rows. "The rest are real hair. Some people prefer to wear real hair for a more natural Halloween costume. Is this a costume?"

"More of a disguise," I said. Luke looked at me curiously and then began to take down some of the mannequin heads that held human hair. He then grabbed a stand-up mirror from underneath the counter and put it on the desk facing me. I excitedly looked over the wigs as I was piling my hair up into a ponytail and clipping it on top of my head.

My first wig was long red hair that reminded me of Arlene's. I looked horrible, and tried a black wig with straight bangs cut that almost covered my eyes. There were so many to try on from Marilyn Monroe's curly style to Lindsay Lohan's tangled mess of hair. It took nearly twenty minutes to try them all on, but Luke was patient as he replaced each wig that I handed back to him.

Finally, I found a pretty good one that looked extremely real to me. It was chocolate brown with highlights of caramel brown, blonde and dark brown scattered through it. It had long natural waves set in it that cascaded down almost past my breasts and side swept bangs that went across my forehead. Satisfied, I told him I was getting this one and he packed it into a bag for me.

I decided I still needed more of a disguise, since hair only counted for it partially. I found very pretty non-prescription glasses that were rectangular with purple and black stripes along the rim, and was thrilled to find coloured eye contacts. I tried on the steeliest blues one I could find, since mine were only a deep blue, and was stunned at the image I saw. The eyes were very light. I also got some fake eyelashes and press on fingernails, since mine were relatively short.

"Remember when you're putting on the wig to put bobby pins around the sides of it," Luke said as he packed everything into a bag. He grabbed a package of bobby pins from underneath the counter and slid that into the bag as well.

"Thank you so much for your help, Luke," I said. He smiled for the first time and I walked out of the store, refraining from listening to his thoughts.

By the time I was driving back towards Bon Temps, it was close to seven o'clock. I drove a little faster than usual and felt my heart sank as I saw Eric already parked in the back of my house.

As I grabbed everything from the trunk of my car and ran up the steps, flinging open the door. I saw Eric sitting at the table with Pam to his left, both drinking bottles of TrueBlood as Pam and Amelia were talking in hushed voices. Eric stood up as I entered, smiling a little.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," I mumbled, gathering the bags in my hands uneasily.

"No apologies, Sookie. I've already brought your things down," Eric said, gesturing to the floor beside me. Sure enough, my three suitcases and one carry on were sitting by the door. I thanked Eric and hurriedly tossed my clothes in.

"Er, do I have to put on my disguise now?" I asked, glancing at the bag that was left in my hand.

"No, they would not recognize us at the airport," he said. "We will change on the plane. I also have fake licenses for us." Eric handed me a driver license without a picture. According to the license, my name was Alexei Rose Bernoth; I was twenty five, and an organ donor.

"We will take a picture of you later at the hotel," Eric said. "Are you ready to leave?"

I nodded and Pam shot up and towards the car without saying hello to me at all. Strange of her. I went over to Amelia as Eric was walking out.

"Are you going to be okay?" I asked.

Amelia smiled. "Of course. Just please be careful, Sookie. I still like you, you know," she said with a smirk.

I laughed and we hugged for a few minutes before I waved and left out the back door. I climbed into the back of Eric's car after he helped me put the suitcases into the trunk along with his own.

It wasn't a ridiculously long drive to the airport, but we arrived twenty minutes before boarding. We did the usual routine of going through luggage check and walking through the metal detectors after emptying out our pockets of our keys and cell phones. Eric held my hand the entire time we walked to through the terminal towards our flight, which gave me little butterflies in my stomach. I knew that I still had feelings for Quinn, small ones, but I would always have feelings for Eric.

Once we boarded the plane, I saw very few people were with us. There were two humans sitting in the back row with two blonde vampires who looked like twins to me, and a redhead female vamp sitting three seats in front of us. I murmured to Eric about the few people flying.

"Very few vampires travel to New York. Most of them fear Errol, for the starters. Plus, we really don't see the need to travel there when we live in Louisiana," he murmured.

I agreed with the first part, but the second part made no sense. I lived in Louisiana too and I was dying to visit New York. I was excited and terrified at the same time.

When the plane took off, Eric and I didn't speak for a while. He was reading some vampire magazine and I stared out the window at the dark sky and clouds. My eyelids drooped continuously from time to time, and I eventually fell asleep halfway through the flight.

I woke up to feel the plane rumbling underneath us and to see Eric leaning over to fasten my seatbelt in. He smirked at me and leaned forward just slightly more, his lips close to mine.

"It might be a rough landing," he breathed, his breath so cold it almost gave my lips goose bumps.

The landing was a little rocky, like Eric said, but once I got off the plane I felt completely fine. In the terminal, I saw that it was three a.m. and there was a nervous looking man standing by the luggage pickup holding a sign that said Northman. I glanced up to see Eric, but he was gone. He was already standing in front of the man. I followed.

"Mr. Northman and Miss Stackhouse?" the man asked nervously, his beady brown eyes flicking from Eric to me. We nodded simultaneously.

"Your luggage has just arrived," the man said, gesturing behind him. He was wearing a navy suit and a driver's cap, so I assumed he would be driving us to the hotel. After scanning through his mind to ensure he wasn't part of the Fellowship of the Sun – you could never be too careful, after what I'd been through – we gathered our luggage with the help of the man and walked out of the terminal.

I was pleased to see a shiny black Rolls Royce awaiting us at the front. Smiling, I helped load the luggage into the truck then climbed into the shiny leather interior. I sank into the plush seats and sighed, my eyelids drooping already. I knew I would have to do some snooping in the daylight, but more than ever I needed sleep now.

Eric was kind enough to realize that as a human, I deserved a little bit more sleep, so he quietly sat in the backseat beside me, peering through the tinted windows as I closed my eyes and cued my brain in on his silence. The peace made my eyes shut immediately, once again.

Twenty minutes later, Eric had woken me up gently by brushing his ice cold lips against my cheek. My eyelids flickered open and I glanced out the tinted windows, stunned at what I saw. The busy streets of Manhattan were crowded with buses, yellow cabs, and hundreds of other automobiles. An overweight hot dog vendor or two stood on the corners of the street, and our car was parked in front of an enormous hotel which, after glancing upwards and counting, had only two windows on the top floor. The rest was made of completely black glass.

Our driver helped unload our luggage onto a trolley from the hotel, along with the help of a bellboy, and I shivered in the cold October air. I drew my hood up around my face and faced the car to slide on black sunglasses, as Eric had told me to do before we exited the car. Inside our rooms we would change into our disguises. When I turned back to Eric, I noticed he had already pulled a cotton cap over his head, shoving his blonde locks into it, and threw on thick black sunglasses.

We wheeled the trolley into the hotel after reassuring the bellboy we needed no help, and went to the front desk. I looked around the hotel. The walls were entirely glass and had appeared shiny and pitch black on the outside, but were just extremely tinted. I could make out the silhouettes of people walking outside, but nothing more. The woman at the front desk smiled as we came towards her, but after reading her thoughts, I knew she was wondering what the hell we were doing in sunglasses at three a.m.

"Hello there, do you have reservations?" she asked with a smile. She was taller, thinner, tanner and blonder than me. Any other man on the planet would be drooling over her right about now, but Eric was staring directly at me. It frightened me a little. Finally, he looked up to answer the woman.

"A reservation under the name Patrick Clark," Eric said, and I tried not to look surprised even behind the glasses. Obviously, Patrick Clark was the identity name of Eric, like mine was Alexei Bernoth.

The woman typed away at the computer at the desk, double-checked it for a minute, and then smiled at us both. "You will be staying in the penthouse of course, Mr. Clark. Here are your room keys." She handed us little plastic cards and gave us another warm smile. "Enjoy your stay at the Bat's Wing."

I almost snorted as Eric and I turned away from the front desk with the trolley and made our way to the elevator. "The Bat's Wing?" I said, grinning as Eric pushed the elevator button. "You don't even turn into bats."

"The owner of this hotel thinks differently," Eric said, smiling slightly. "He is human, keep that in mind."

I smiled and was silent the entire ride up the elevator, as Eric had pushed the twenty-third floor. It was a long ride, but when we came off, I was pleased. The hallway we stood in had only two doors across the hall from each other, and its long length of walls promised enormous rooms stood behind those doors. Eric turned to one door, which was marked _P1_, and took the card key out of his pocket, pushing it into the lock. I was leading the trolley into the room behind Eric, and the penthouse boggled my mind.

Walking into the penthouse, the room was split into two sections followed by two open doorways on either side leading to other sections of the penthouse suite. The room we stood in was half a living room and half a sitting area. The living room side held a large brown leather couch which stood behind a large mahogany coffee table and looked towards an enormous plasma flat screen TV and the mini bar, which stood beside the TV. The sitting room side had a cluster of matching brown leather chairs circling a large round mahogany table and had potted plants and a lamp in each corner. There was a large bowl of freshly baked cookies in the middle, which surprised me as this was a vampire hotel. The enormous tinted window took up the entire wall at the back, and there was a tiny red button on the side wall that I realized opened the tinted windows to normal windows to look out onto the city.

I pushed the trolley in and ran towards one of the open doorways. This lead to the kitchen and dining room, fully equipped from a fridge, stove and microwave to a coffee maker, dishwasher and even a food processor. I opened the fridge to see it half fully stocked with TrueBlood and the other half stocked with juices, fruit, and other food. The cupboards and pantry were also fully stocked.

The other doorway, I discovered, lead to a small hallway. This hallway held three bedrooms, a master bathroom, and a den with shelves and shelves of books as well as a Mac computer.

"It's not much, but I suppose we wouldn't be spending too much time in here anyway," Eric said humbly, walking towards the kitchen. I was speechless as I came out of the hallway that held our bedrooms.

"This is amazing, Eric," I said, still in awe. I slid off my cardigan and walked into the kitchen, removing my sunglasses along the way. Eric was leaning against the countertop waiting for the TrueBlood which was rotating in the microwave.

"Everything in the fridge and cupboards is already paid for, naturally," he said, jumping so fast I barely saw it so he could sit on the counter. "The mini bar, of course, is off limits."

I snorted. "I wouldn't need the tiny food in the mini bar with all this," I said, opening a cupboard and taking out a box of Wheat Thins. As I was opening the box, I looked up at Eric. "What's on the agenda for tonight?"

Eric shook his head and removed the TrueBlood from the microwave. "Nothing. Tonight, you may sleep if you like." He grinned slyly. "Or we may act out what happened between us the other night."  
I got a horrible tingling feeling from my head to my toes again and mumbled something about being tired, turning my back and heading towards the living room. My eyelids responded wonderfully as they began to droop, and I smirked as I decided to have fun. Even as a vampire, I could feel Eric's eyes on my back. So, I grabbed my luggage and brought it to the bedroom I would claim. It was dark walled with royal purple sheets and bed spread, very girly. As I crossed the hall to the bathroom, I slid off the tank top I had been wearing to reveal myself in just my bra and shorts for a minute to Eric in the small gap of the hallway. I grinned, and while in the bathroom, I combed my hair with my fingers as I pulled it out of the ponytail. Then, I crossed the hallway again as I slid off my shorts.

I turned to see Eric standing in the doorway, his fangs out and his eyes on me.

"You are a tease, lover," he hissed.

"Not tonight," I said and closed the door on his face. I could've laughed at his expression, but I quietly changed into my silky baby blue nightgown and climbed into bed. Within minutes, I was fast asleep.

* * *

When I woke up, it was bright and sunny outside. The digital clock by my bed read one in the afternoon. Yawning, I sat up in the bed and walked out into the hallway. Curiosity got the better of me, and I grasped the doorknob to the first bedroom and peeked inside; Eric was laid in a bundle of dark red sheets and a silk comforter, looking completely still and pretty much dead. I grinned and shut the door quietly, walking out towards the kitchen.

As I was heating up a croissant I found in the bread box and taking out cheese and eggs to make with it, I noticed a little white note and three twenty dollar bills had been stuck to the fridge with a tiny bat-shaped magnet. I took the note from the magnet and read it

_You have a few tasks to do this morning._

_First of all, make sure you put on your full disguise before you leave the hotel. I would like you to take a taxi to 34 Charles St. and take a tour of it. This is Errol's headquarters, and since everyone in Manhattan respects him so much, Errol has allowed a day tour of it. Make sure your cell phone is on and to have Catalides on easy speed dial so you may contact him easily in case of emergency. Also, use your cell phone to take as many pictures as you can of the headquarters. We are looking for weak points. After the tour, return to the hotel and to our room immediately. The first event at Errol's headquarters begins tonight at nine._

_Stay safe, lover._

_E_

I put the note down on the counter along with the money Eric had attached to the fridge. After eating the eggs and cheese croissant, I went to shower and set out my disguise on my bed. I looked over it for a moment, then started to prepare my alter ego.

I piled my hair at the top of my head and fastened it with many bobby pins. Then, I stood in front of the full-length mirror on the back of my door to ensure all my hair was pulled back as tightly as possibly before slipping on my wig. The brown strands cascaded down my shoulders and chest, and I fastened some more bobby pins underneath to hold it in place. I decided to make it look a lot like my real hair by pulling back some pieces and using a hair clip in my purse to fasten it back.

Then, I carefully applied my make-up and placed the fake eyelashes on my eyes, admiring them for a moment before I moved onto the contacts. Once I got comfortable with poking the contacts into my eyes, I was amazed at how much I had already changed. I slid the glasses onto my nose and pressed on the fake fingernails, grimacing at their length. I then changed into a pair of dark jeans and a pretty white cropped shirt that just hit the top of my jeans before grabbing my purse, shoving the note, money and my cell phone and card key into it, and then went out to face Manhattan.

The first night had been a blur of just getting here; I was pleased to finally get out into the world. Manhattan, of course, was busy and crowded. I realized that in order to get to my destination, I had to wave down a cab. I felt nervous, since I had always seen this done in movies but never actually done it before. I stood on the side of the sidewalk and started to wave my hand frantically. Luckily, it only took a minute before a bright yellow cab pulled to stop in front of me. I climbed in.

"Where to, lady?" a deeply tanned man with lots of facial hair asked me in the front seat.

"34 Charles St.," I said after glancing down at the note in my purse. The cab pulled away from the curb abruptly and started roaring down the street. The leather seats smelled of marijuana, tobacco and hot dogs. I held my breath for the majority of the ride.

While waiting at a traffic jam on the corner of Charles St., I leaned my head out of the window to get a glimpse of the cause of the jam. A homeless man was dancing naked with a cardboard box over his head in the middle of the road, and two police officers were trying to calm him down. I glanced at the dashboard of the cab and saw I already owed twenty dollars for the ride, so I figured I could get out now.

"I'll get out here," I told the driver, throwing one of Eric's twenties over the front seat and scrambling out of the cab. I was glad I had worn comfortable shoes as I walked around the corner to Charles St. I ignored the homeless man as he started screaming about the overpriced pizzas at Pizza Hut and glanced up at the numbers on a coffee shop's door; twenty-two. I walked slowly down the sidewalk, peering up at the numbers, until I realized looking at the address numbers wasn't necessary at all.

As I looked to the left of 32 Charles St., I was welcomed by an enormous stone grey wall that lead down the street until it hit another corner approximately a football field away. It was still about half the size of Sophie-Anne's headquarters, if I could remember correctly, but still quite as large. The doorway to the stone wall consisted of iron gates that were swung open to the public. I made my way along the wall until I met the gates, and peered inside carefully.

The building itself was even larger than the wall. It was enormous with deeply tinted windows and a grand archway that lead into its interiors. Two skinny but muscular human men – change that, as I took a quick scan of their heads, Weres of some sort – were guarding the main archway. Beautiful green lawns were kept trim and tidy despite the cool October weather that would have turned the grass slightly brown down in Bon Temps, and there was a cluster of humans anxiously waiting outside with cameras at the ready. I walked through the gates to join the group.

"Alright everyone, the admission fee is ten dollars and there is a gift shop within at the end of the tour. You can all give your money to Samantha inside, you can't miss her," the guards said as they pushed open the main doors. I walked into the building behind the group, tugging my purse up over my shoulder.

The first room we stood in was an enormous foyer with white marble floors, high ceilings and a glittering chandelier that hung over the center. A long counter stood in front of us with many humans in suits and dresses collecting papers, and I assumed they were the day workers for their vamps. A thin short woman with black pixie cut hair and horn rimmed glasses beamed up at us as she wore a generic bright red tour guide suit; this was Samantha.

"Good afternoon everyone, and welcome to Errol's Manor," she said brightly, sweeping her arm around the room royally. "I'm Samantha, and I'll be your tour guide for the next hour and a half. If you could just give me the ten dollar admission fee before we pass the doors over there." She pointed to a set of black doors to the left of us. "We'll be on our way!"

A jumble of people shoved ten dollar bills into the little fanny pack that Samantha wore around her waist, and I slid forward to hand her my own.

"Alrighty," she said with a bigger smile. "Right this way!" She strutted towards the big black doors and, silently, the rest of us followed. I felt like a spy, which I was in a way, as I walked through the big black doors into the main areas of Errol's headquarters.


	7. 7

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Sookie Stackhouse's character, or the remainder of the characters listed on the website. I have merely created the plot.

**Author's Note:** It's been a week since my last update, so I figured I should add another chapter. I will probably doing this for the remainder of the story however – a chapter a week. I started updating my other stories (for Harry Potter) and I feel I should be giving a fair amount of time for each one. Sorry for the disappointment! But I hope you enjoy, and review! Thank you so much.

* * *

Chapter Seven

When Samantha pushed open the enormous black doors, the rest of the tourists and me were blasted which the coldest air imaginable. I immediately felt goose bumps crawling up my arms as I yanked my purse up over my shoulder, slipping my cell phone out of it to put in my pocket for safe keeping. I wasn't entirely sure that we were allowed to be taking photos of the headquarters; therefore I was glad the phone had a quick button on the side that allowed me to take pictures without even opening it.

The hallway inside of the black doors was freezing, probably right at zero degree Celsius I imagined. I could see my breath as Samantha led us through the large plain hallway that had nothing except one door at the end of it.

"This is just the entrance tunnel," Samantha explained, her breath coming out in quick puffs as she briskly lead us towards the door at the end. I huddled closer to the group to keep warm, regretting my outfit of a cropped shirt immediately.

"Now." Samantha paused at the door to face us. "I would please ask for no flash photography by this point, and to please remain silent as I discuss the areas we will be seeing in the tour. Everyone ready?" The group nodded a response, and she pushed open the single plain grey door.

A warmer air greeted us, and we all sighed with relief as we hurried single-file through the door, which closed behind us quietly. I drew in my breath as I took in our surroundings of this room.

We were standing in what had the structural appearance of a chapel, with tall arched ceilings and dark glass panels to keep the sunlight out. However, there were no pews for us to sit on that would allow it to be a chapel. Instead, little cubicles that consisted of a desk, a computer and a chair – and sometimes occupied by a human – filled the majority of the area with the exception of carpeted aisles for people to walk through. It looked pretty much like a normal office aside from the ceiling and walls, with a water cooler and a long desk with a coffee maker, cups, milk and sweeteners up against one wall.

"This is the reception area," Samantha explained as she led us down the middle aisle. "For the most part, this is where any day time phone calls or appointments for Errol are recorded and set up. This is also where Errol personally assists his employees during the evening as he begins to set up his new locations."

I had no idea what she was talking about, but the tourists gave low _oh'_s and _ah's_ as she said this, their cameras clicking away in all directions. I decided I should get a description of this room as well, and slid my cell phone out of my pocket, pressing the quick button as I took a picture of the chapel room. I put a name underneath it that read "Reception area" to show Eric.

"Now, if you'll follow me, I'll show you the dining area through here. Very fascinating." She made it sound so, but I doubted it would be and let my mind wander into those of the employees who were working within the cubicles. A small blonde boy of about twenty-three was thinking how much he'd rather be watching porn right now, and a tall girl with auburn hair was actually _watching_ porn. I grimaced and moved forward with the rest of the tour.

Samantha smiled brightly as she pushed open what appeared to be another black panel in the wall of the end of the reception area, but was actually a door. We all walked through and stood at the end of a large room with about ten picnic benches set up in five lines. One wall held a long table of cups, fresh fruit and coffee and behind that table was an open area in the wall that allowed the chefs in the kitchen to look through and take orders.

"During the night, the kitchen is closed off and the tables are cleared and lined with real willing humans and hundreds of bottles of synthetic blood for the real masterminds of Errol's Manor," Samantha explained nonchalantly, waving her hand absentmindedly. "In the morning, it's quite boring. Perhaps you'd like to come back through at night to see some real interesting things."

I shuddered at the thought and took out my camera, taking a few quick snaps around the room. So far, the tour was promising to be nothing but boring. It almost appeared like a normal office in New York.

It was only when Samantha led us to the next room that I was proved how wrong I was.

As she pushed open the door, everyone's mouths opened and soft gasps flowed around the room. I highly doubt our gasps were heard though.

This was the largest part of the headquarters, I discovered. It was approximately three football fields in width and four football fields in length. The ceiling had that chapel-like arch to it again, and the dark panels cast an eerie, unrealistic glow to the room. The room was so crowded with people that I could barely believe how we would get through. But the most intriguing part of the room was the fact that every human standing in the room either held a gun, a bow and arrow, or some sort of weaponry.

"This," Samantha said, gesturing a hand towards the room. "Is the training room."

"Training for what?" a plump older woman asked, the camera she held shaking in her hands as she watched an incredibly brawny man aiming his gun at a drawn picture of a vampire's head.

"Oh, well that's not for me to tell you," Samantha said cheerfully, tilting her head with a smile. "In fact, none of you will learn what they are training for. It's very private."

I took this time especially to take as many pictures as I could. I glanced around the room as Samantha explained the seriousness of the training, completely tuning her out. There were cameras set in every corner of the room, as far as my eyes could see. I took pictures of this as well, trying to be discreet so the camera people wouldn't consider me to be a spy. I also tried to look pleasantly enthralled in everything Samantha was saying, and took pictures of various weapons as we wound our way through the enormous crowd of brawny men.

"There are no women training here?" I asked suddenly, glancing around the room.

"Oh goodness no," Samantha said with a wider smile. "Women have a much different job in this scenario. We'll see as we go into the next room."  
And sure enough, as we made our long journey through the thousands of men filling the room, I found out that the women had a specific role that… disgusted me. As we entered the next room, I gasped and covered my mouth in horror, though I tried to play it off as amazement.

The next room was slightly smaller than the last one, but only slightly. This room was filled with the women, who were either lying on beds or sitting in chairs. The majority of the women there were scandalously clad and were obviously fangbangers. Each woman had their own station with a nurse, a glass, a jug of water, and millions of pills. And they all had needles stuck into them, multiple needles. The most I could count on one of them was fifteen.

"These are the willing blood donors for the vampires," Samantha explained as she circled stations for us to look. "Each woman has pills that would improve their blood, including iron, and are removed of a majority of their blood per day for the vampires to stay strong.

"Has – has anyone ever died?" an older woman asked shakily.

"Oh yes, many." Samantha shook her head. "Unfortunate, it is. But they were willing to do this for us; therefore we must accept their generosity and do what we can with it."

I grimaced as I saw a much older woman, near her sixties, with lots of eye make up and her skirt hiked up, moaning in pleasure as the nurse stuck three needles somewhere where they did not need to be stuck.

"Let's continue," Samantha said, leading us through to the door near our right. Everyone turned their attention immediately towards that door, and I followed, trying my best to clear the image I just saw.

The next room was obviously the dormitories of the vampires, or something like it. It reminded me of a hotel hallway, with a handful of doors parallel to each other. There were numbers plastered on the doors from one to ten, and there was a random potted plant set in the corner.

"This is where Errol's leading men and women sleep during the day," Samantha said as she ran a hand over one door. "Errol himself does not sleep here, for security purposes. And." She turned to face us, her eyes suddenly cold. "If any of you are from the Fellowship of the Sun, you may as well turn around right now because if you even attempt to set something on these doors or sabotage them, you will be torn to pieces within seconds."

The entire group of tourists froze, staring up at Samantha. I blinked and proceeded to snap pictures of each door. I was tempted to ask her to tell us who was in which room, so I could mark them down in my phone, but I fought back that temptation to avoid looking suspicious.

For the most part, the tour gave me nothing remotely intriguing to take pictures of, but I did anyway – I wasn't sure what information Eric needed exactly. The most resourceful picture I got was the one that showed the grand staircase that lead up towards Errol's resting place and his body guards.

"Now, the gift shop is the last spot on our tour," Samantha said after another half an hour of complete wastefulness. The tourists eagerly split up to peer around the shop as I absentmindedly picked up a coffee mug that read "I Love NYC and Errol!"

"Hello." I turned to see Samantha talking to me, her fake smile plastered on. "You have lovely hair, did you know that?"

"Oh, thank you." I touched the ends of my wig and smiled faintly, placing the mug back down.

"What's your name?" she asked.

"S- Alexei. Alexei Bernoth," I said, remembering instantly that I was under cover.

"Very nice to meet you. Are you attending tonight's events?" she asked curiously.

I glimpsed into her mind for a brief second to read her thoughts. _Fucking Errol, should've called me back last night… our times together weren't amazing, I'll show him… this girl would make a perfect present for Errol… he'd have fun fucking her brains out, but only if I can join in_.

I was thankful that I was a master at hiding my emotions as I cleared my throat. "Oh, what events?" I asked cautiously.

"Oh, well for the next few days, Errol will be hosting an event every night. Tonight in particular is a strip club sort of event, along with a fashion show. You are welcome to come and bring a date."

"Oh yes," I said suddenly. "My boyfriend and I, he mentioned coming here. I just wasn't sure what the events were."

"Of course." Samantha smiled and picked up a pin with Errol's name plastered on it. "It would be lovely if you could."

After I forced myself to buy some fudge called _Errol's Favourite_, Samantha led us back into the main room, where we thanked her for a lovely tour and hurried out of the building as fast as we could.

When I came outside, many hours had already passed. Before I waved down a taxi, I decided to treat myself to something special. I walked into the Starbucks on the corner and bought myself a tall white chocolate frappuccino, amazed at how delicious it was. I then bought myself an enormous foot long hot dog with everything on it, and climbed back into a cab. Luckily, I had just enough money left over after my splurging on treats to give the driver as I climbed out and went back into the hotel.

Once safe up in our room, it was close to dusk. I sank into the large leather couch, sighing in comfort, and set my cold drink on a coaster, flipping through the TV. My scalp was itching like mad, so I slid off the wig and tossed it over the arm beside me, removing the bobby pins to let my hair cascade down my shoulders.

I spent a good thirty minutes eating my foot long, seeing as it was so big that I had to take my time. The frappuccino was melting quickly, so I swallowed it in large gobs and opted for some peach tea instead. As I got up to go to the fridge, I heard shuffling inside of Eric's room. I glanced over my shoulder and saw him zip across the hallway to the bathroom so fast that it was a blur. Stunned, I went over to the fridge and grasped a bottle of peach tea, bending over a little to get it with the hot dog stuck in my mouth. A firm pair of hands grasped my waist as I was bent over, and something particularly firm began to move against my behind.

"Good evening, lover," Eric's cool voice droned in my ear. I stood up abruptly and turned to him, most likely looking absolutely ridiculous with an enormous hot dog protruding out of my mouth and a bottle of peach tea in my hands, clad with ridiculously long fingernails.

"You scared me," I said as I popped the hot dog out of my mouth. Eric's gaze had frozen at the sight of me, and he glanced down at the hot dog in my hand as I took it out.

"Oddly enough, lover, the sight of you with that disgusting piece of mixed meat sticking out of your mouth has made something begin to throb down below," he said, grinning up at me.

"Oh, shut up," I said, blushing slightly.

"No." Eric took the hot dog and bottle out of my hands, putting them on the counter behind me and leaning forward, his hands on either side of the counter as he pressed me against it. It was then that I realized Eric had only a towel wrapped around his waist, and I could immediately feel something swelling against my thigh. I let out an involuntary moan.

"Sookie." His voice was almost a whisper, and a series of shivers spread down my arms. I opened my eyes slowly to see him gazing back at me, passion and lust glazing over his eyes. "What time is it?"

His odd question caught me off guard, and I glanced over his shoulder to read the digital clock on the satellite box. "Seven o'four," I said precisely, my eyes flicking back to him.

"I have an hour of your time," he said, his fangs extended just slightly. I knew what he meant right away.

"Eric, no," I said sternly, pushing my hands against his chest. But his hands caught my wrist and his head tilted to take one of my fingers into his mouth, sucking on it slowly.

"Stop it," I quivered, moving my hand away from his mouth. He ignored me once again, wrapping his arms around my waist and pushing our hips hard together. I was amazed that the towel was still staying in place.

"I will have you right now," he growled in a voice that wasn't human. I bit my lip and looked up at him.

"Wait!" I gasped as his lips came closer to mine. I managed to move away from his arms to rush to my bedroom, sitting on the end of my bed as I snapped off each nail, took off the fake eyelashes, and popped out my coloured contacts. I then flung open my door to see Eric standing there.

Without another word, his arms gathered me against him and our lips met in a fiery passion. His fangs very gently nibbled on my lower lip and I let out an audible moan at the feeling while my lips tugged and sucked on his, kissing him with such a roaring passion that I could barely stand it. He walked backwards until we were both within the bathroom, and his hips moved against mine to pin me against the vanity. His hands ran up my bare skin underneath my crop shirt, and goose bumps speckled my skin at the feeling. Once his fingers grasped the ends of my shirt, Eric lifted off the shirt to leave me in my bra and jeans only.

Not speaking, but keeping our lips on one another's, he lifted me onto the vanity and spread my legs apart to move between them, pressing roughly between me. I gasped and my hands reached up to slide into his hair. He responded with a sound that resembled a hiss and tore off my bra, ripping it right off my back. I couldn't speak; every part of my body was sacrificing itself to Eric. He slowly dragged his fangs down the side of my neck, never sinking them in, and slid down until his lips met my breast. As his cool lips circled my right nipple and his fangs dragged along it very gently, my body arched and my fingers tugged on Eric's hair somewhat roughly.

He continued to pleasure me there, his tongue circling the hard peaks and his lips pulling them firmly into his mouth. I could barely breathe, and my breath came out ragged and shallow as his hand found its way between our bodies to press between my legs.

"Eric," I sighed against him, pulling him down into me. "Now."

He ignored me once again, frustrating me, and reached between our bodies to unbutton my jeans. I thanked God that I had worn my prettiest pink panties – a thong – as the tight jeans struggled to slide off my sweating body. He moved away for a moment to seize the towel with one hand and shrug it off his body, tossing it aside. I bit my lip as I gazed at him from head to toe, taking an extra long glance somewhere between those two points. He didn't say a word, although I wanted to say a million to him, and he slid two fingers under the straps of the thong to slide it down and off, tossing it aside with the remainder of our clothes.

He picked me up in his arms and brought us through to his room, falling backwards onto the silky sheets of his bed as he brought me over him. I knew exactly where to go, what to do, as my hips rocked forward and he shoved every inch of his length inside of me. I gasped, gripping his hips as I pulled him close, my head tilted and my body shivering.

Eric seemed to know exactly what movements his hips should make as he rocked them back and forth in time with me, pushing himself slowly out and then roughly into me. I was begging for more without actually telling him, and he knew my cries immediately. He flipped us over so that I was lying on the bed top, gazing up at him, and bent to drag his tongue in a line over my collarbone as he pushed himself roughly inside of me. I shrieked slightly, but not in pain; the pleasure was almost too much. I grabbed Eric's shoulders and dug my nails into them, drawing blood, as we both moved in hard, quick thrusts into one another. My breathing was heavy and I could see actual drips of sweat sliding down his pale face, a sight that amazed me. Bill had never sweated when we had had sex before.

Eric seemed to know every position available as he picked me up once more, his member still inside of me, and brought us through to the living room. He set me down on the top of the couch rather than the seats and thrust himself into me there. I gasped and spread my legs to wrap them around his waist, pulling him tighter and harder into me. He responded very well by thrusting harder than ever into me, and my breasts swayed with the force.

Three orgasms came after one another in that position and he didn't stop there. We continued fucking with me bent over the top of the couch, pushed onto the coffee table, pressed up against a wall, and at once point he held me up with minimal effort to hold me against the fridge and thrust into me there. I didn't think I would enjoy myself so much, but I did; Eric was incredible.

"Sookie," he grunted as he thrust into me, his hands in my hair and my back shoved against the cupboards. "You are un-fucking-believable."

I couldn't respond, because another orgasm shuddered through my body and I gasped out in delight as I felt Eric respond at the same time. We cradled together, our heads on one another's shoulders, as we both meted our breaking point. Collapsing against the counter and unable to breathe, I looked up at Eric with heavy breaths. He grasped my chin with both hands and brought my lips up to his, kissing me softly but deeply.

"If I could feel any emotions, I know I would love you," he said softly. My heart soared. It was the first time Eric had ever used the word love with me, and I choked back a soft sob as I smiled up at him, swinging my arms around his neck.

"Do we really need to go to Errol's tonight," I murmured as he held me around his body.

"Yes, lover," he murmured into my ear, stroking my sweat-soaked hair. "We are obliged to go. Now, let us go shower and change for the night." He kissed my lips once more as he glided through the hallway towards the bathroom, starting the shower. We were both very tempted to continue our evening in the shower, but decided only to bathe – and tease. When Eric turned to reach the soap, I would accidentally slide my shampoo-slippery hand over his length and stroke him, just once. He would moan and tilt his head back for that one stroke, but I never continued it.

Once we were both showered, we proceeded to change into our disguises. I asked Eric what outfit I should be wearing tonight, and he chose the very pretty royal purple silk dress that looked as if it was a high-waisted skirt with a tank top underneath it. I fastened my hair to put my wig on as the final touch when Eric came out in his disguise.

I had to admit, Eric almost looked even better in his disguise then he did in real life. His hair was still blonde, but very wavy and combed away from his face. I could tell he done something to make it look shorter, but I couldn't tell you what. He too also wore glasses which were rectangular and thick. His eyebrows were thicker, and his lips were fuller. His chin had added a cleft to it as well. His eyes were the same colour, but I liked it. He wore a very nice black dress shirt with a sheen to it, half-tucked into a pair of dark grey cotton pants and black penny loafers.

As we left the hotel, Eric quickly slipped a photo of my disguised self into the laminated fake license. We held hands as we walked towards the elevator, stood in silence all the way down, and exited with admiring gazes coming our way.

"You look beautiful like this," Eric said into my ear, putting on a thick accent I thought was actually his real accent. "But I prefer you as Sookie."

I blushed and beamed up at him the entire time we rode the taxi to Errol's headquarters.


End file.
